Springtime is coming, and so are the scammers. Their timing is as reliable as the birds, flowers and buds on the trees in your yard. But that’s the only thing that’s reliable about those who pose as electric cooperative employees and call or visit you to ask for money.

Impersonators will ask you for everything, from making good on a supposedly overdue bill to paying upfront to replace your electric meter. They might tell you about a fantastic new program designed to save you energy and ask you for your personal information to sign up—including your bank account or credit card number.

Don’t fall for it! Here’s what to be on the lookout for:

• Someone who calls on the phone might convince you that you’ve overpaid your electric bill and ask for your bank account or credit card number for a refund. Think before you agree. If you usually pay your bill with a credit card or check, the utility already has that information and won’t ask for it.

• A scammer who unexpectedly shows up at your home claiming to be a utility worker might offer to do a free energy audit, then either ask for your credit card number to pay for an additional service or convince you to let him come inside your home.

• If you haven’t requested a home visit from your electric cooperative—or if the utility hasn’t notified you in advance that someone is coming—chances are good the unscheduled visitor is a fraud.

• Any contractor who demands immediate payment is not legit. Nobody from your electric cooperative will visit or call you and threaten to cut off your service unless you pay on the spot.

• Never agree to pay by wire transfer, cryptocurrency, gift card or cash-reload card. Those are sure signs you’re being scammed.

If you believe someone is falsely representing themselves as an employee of your electric cooperative, send them on their way. Then, report the visit to your utility.