Can a utility company turn off my service?
A utility company may terminate a customer’s utility service for nonpayment, meter tampering or customer fraud. Public utilities have a legal duty to serve the public and cannot discriminate against particular groups or types of customers, including low-income customers.

Utilities must also send residential customers a pre-disconnection notice before terminating a customer’s service, give customers an opportunity to contest an unpaid or disputed bill, and inform delinquent gas and electric customers of their options to enter into extended payment plans to avoid termination of service and of the availability of payment assistance programs for low-income customers to lower their monthly payments and avoid disconnection of service during the winter heating season.

The pre-disconnection notices must also notify customers of their right to contest a disputed bill and provide contact information for the company’s service representatives and the consumer complaint call-in centers of the Ohio Consumers’ Counsel (OCC) at the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio (PUCO).

See also the Forms & Education tab in this section for more information.