Consolidated Edison Company of New York: billing error

Collect

• the disputed bill
• previous bills
• meter photos with dates
• call notes with reference numbers

Steps

1. Call Con Edison or use the email contact form. Say which charges you dispute and why. Get a reference number.

   PhoneCustomer service, billing assistance, and gas and electric emergencies (1-800-75-CONED) +1-800-752-6633

2. Keep paying the part of the bill that is not in dispute.

3. If Con Edison does not fix it, file a complaint with the NY Department of Public Service.

More contacts for this issue

Facts you can cite

• Process

  DPS asks customers to first seek help from the utility, which is required by law to assist. While DPS investigates, the customer must pay the undisputed portion of the bill or service may be terminated.

  Source: dps.ny.gov, verified 2026-10-12

• Policy

  Under HEFPA, a residential customer who files a complaint with the Department of Public Service cannot have service shut off for the disputed amount while the complaint is investigated, as long as the undisputed amount is paid.

  Source: dps.ny.gov, verified 2026-10-12

• Policy

  Under HEFPA, utilities may demand security deposits from existing customers who are delinquent, and customers may pay a deposit in up to 12 monthly installments. Late payment charges are limited to 1.5% per month.

  Source: dps.ny.gov, verified 2026-10-12

Rules in force

• Restore Online Shoppers' Confidence Act (ROSCA) negative option requirements
  15 U.S.C. 8401-8405

  A seller that charges consumers online through a negative option feature (for example an automatic renewal or a free trial that converts to paid) must clearly disclose all material terms before taking billing information, get the consumer's express informed consent before charging, and provide simple mechanisms to stop recurring charges. The FTC enforces ROSCA.

  Source: law.cornell.edu, verified 2026-10-12

  1 citable point

  • Policy

    The seller must obtain "a consumer's express informed consent before charging the consumer's credit card, debit card, bank account, or other financial account".

    Source: law.cornell.edu, verified 2026-10-12

If that fails, escalate

Go up one step at a time. Keep the reference numbers and dates from each contact.

1. Customer service

   PhoneCustomer service, billing assistance, and gas and electric emergencies (1-800-75-CONED) +1-800-752-6633

2. Supervisor

   Ask the representative for a supervisor. Write down the name and reference number.

3. Written complaint

   FormEmail contact form on the Contact Us page

4. State agency

   Your state’s utility commission. Find it in the list of state agencies (also as JSON: states/<code>.json, for example states/ny.json).

   New York State Public Service Commission / Department of Public Service. DPS asks customers to contact the utility first. With a final termination notice, call the DPS shut-off hotline instead of using the online form.

5. State agency

   Your state’s attorney general. Find it in the list of state agencies (also as JSON: states/<code>.json, for example states/ny.json).

   New York Attorney General.

Watch out

Related

• Billing error at other companies
• How Consolidated Edison Company of New York complaints actually go (dossier, checked 2026-10-12)
• Electric and gas utilities — how complaints work
• Consolidated Edison Company of New York: disconnection notice
• Consolidated Edison Company of New York: outage credit