Seattle City Light is urging its customers to be on guard against telephone con artists posing as utility bill collectors.

Recently, several customers reported that they received phone calls from people claiming to be City Light bill collectors. The callers claimed there was a problem with payment of the customer's bill and demanded credit card information to resolve the matter.

The crooks appear to be targeting the elderly and customers who may have a primary language other than English.

Carol Dickinson, director of customer relations and account services, said City Light wants to help customers protect themselves from such scams.

"We do not make outbound calls to customers asking for money to pay their bill or to ask for personal account or customer information as part of our daily work," Dickinson said. "We respect customer privacy and take security of customer account and payment information seriously. We take many pro-active steps to ensure that customer information is kept safe."

City Light sends at least two written warnings to customers who are about to have their power turned off, asking them to contact the utility directly to make a payment.

City Light also would like to remind customers:

* Seattle City Light never asks customers over the telephone for credit card information to pay their bills.

* Seattle City Light does not call customers on weekends.

* Seattle City Light employees carry identification with the City Light logo and will always display it when asked.

All City Light customers are advised to take down the name and telephone number of anyone who calls and represents himself or herself as a City Light employee. Also, before a customer provides anyone with credit information, they should call City Light at 684-3000 to verify that the request is legitimate.