Watch for Fraudulent City Invoices and Payment Requests

If you’re working with the City on a planning, zoning, historic preservation, permitting, or development project, please take an extra moment to verify any invoice or payment request you receive.

Scammers are increasingly using publicly available project and meeting information to send convincing emails that appear to come from the City or City staff. These messages may include your real property address, project details, case or application number, hearing date, or the name of an actual City employee.

Even if the information in an email is accurate, that does not mean the invoice is legitimate.

The City will never ask you to pay by wire transfer

The City of Kalamazoo will never reach out to you requesting a wire transfer.

If an email or invoice claiming to be from the City asks you to send a wire transfer, do not make the payment.

Even if you are expecting a fee or invoice for an active application or project, take a moment to verify the amount and payment instructions before paying.

Check the email address

City of Kalamazoo employee email addresses end in: @kalamazoocity.org

Recent fraudulent emails have used addresses ending in @usa.com and @mail.com, while including words like “Kalamazoo,” “Planning,” “Zoning,” or City department names to make them look official.

Pay attention to what comes after the @ symbol. For example, an address like planning-kalamazoo@usa.com is not a City of Kalamazoo email address.

Also keep in mind that scammers can copy City logos, staff names, signatures, and other details from public information.

Verify before you pay

If you receive an invoice or payment request from the City, especially one you were not expecting or that includes new payment instructions:

• Check that the amount and payment instructions match what you were expecting.
• Contact your City staff contact directly if anything seems unusual.
• Use contact information you already have or find it independently at kalamazoocity.org.
• You can also call 311 or (269) 337-8000 for help verifying a request.
• Do not use a phone number, email address, payment link, or QR code provided only in a suspicious message.

If you are unsure whether an email is legitimate, do not reply to the message to verify it. You may simply be responding to the scammer. 

Planning and development applicants should be especially careful

This scam is happening across the country and has frequently targeted people involved in planning, zoning, permitting, historic preservation, and development projects.

Information about these projects is often publicly available through meeting agendas, applications, public notices, and other records. Scammers can use that information to make a fake invoice look very convincing.

If you have an active matter before the Planning Commission, Zoning Board of Appeals, Historic District Commission, or another City department, be especially cautious about unexpected invoices or changes to payment instructions.

Things to watch for

Be cautious if a message claiming to be from the City:

• Asks you to pay by wire transfer.
• Comes from an email address that does not end in @kalamazoocity.org.
• Pressures you to pay quickly or says your project will be delayed if you do not.
• Provides new or unexpected payment instructions.
• Includes an unexpected payment link, QR code, or attachment.

A professional-looking invoice or accurate project information does not guarantee that a message is legitimate.

If you receive a suspicious invoice

Do not send payment, click links, or open unexpected attachments. Contact the City directly so we can help you verify the request.

If you have already sent money, contact your bank or financial institution immediately. You should also save the original email, invoice, attachments, and payment instructions and report the incident to the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center at ic3.gov. Both successful and unsuccessful scam attempts can be reported.

Remember

The City of Kalamazoo will never request payment by wire transfer.

If you receive a City invoice, verify the amount and payment instructions before paying — even if the email contains accurate information about your project.