---
company: con-edison
title: Con Edison — how complaints actually go
last_verified: 2026-10-12
---

## In short

Call Con Edison at 1-800-75-CONED first, then take an unresolved complaint to the New York Department of Public Service, which can stop a shutoff for the disputed amount while you keep paying the rest. After a final disconnection notice, call the DPS shutoff hotline (800-342-3355) instead of using the online form. File food spoilage claims within 30 days of a non-storm outage. Con Edison does not take gift cards, crypto, wire transfers or payment apps, and pays only through conEd.com or its named payment page.

## How complaints actually go

- Frontline and verification line: 1-800-752-6633 (1-800-75-CONED). [Con Edison: beware of scammers](https://www.coned.com/en/safety/energy-safety/beware-of-scammers)
- DPS requires you to seek help from the utility first, which is "required by law to assist". Then call the DPS helpline at 800-342-3377 (8:30 a.m.-4:00 p.m., Monday-Friday) or file online. [NY DPS: file a complaint](https://dps.ny.gov/file-complaint)
- While DPS investigates, keep paying the undisputed part of the bill, or Con Edison may still terminate service. [NY DPS: file a complaint](https://dps.ny.gov/file-complaint)
- If you disagree with the DPS decision, ask for an informal hearing or review within 15 days, then appeal to the Public Service Commission within 15 days of that decision. [NY DPS: file a complaint](https://dps.ny.gov/file-complaint)
- Food spoilage claims: Con Edison pays up to $655 for food, with prescription medicine reimbursed outside that cap, when a local distribution outage lasted more than 12 hours within 24 hours. File within 30 days; review takes about 30 days. [Con Edison spoilage claim](https://www.coned.com/en/services-and-outages/claim-form/residential-spoilage-claim-form)

## What tends to work

- Ask for a payment extension of up to 10 days, or, with a Financial Statement Form, special payment agreement terms if you meet income requirements. [Con Edison payment plans and assistance](https://www.coned.com/en/accounts-billing/payment-plans-assistance)
- Use the weather protections: no residential disconnections when the Central Park high with wind chill is forecast at 32°F or lower, or on the day of or before a heat index of 90°F or higher (and two more days if it exceeds 90°F). [Con Edison cold and heat protections](https://www.coned.com/en/accounts-billing/payment-plans-assistance/special-services/cold-heat-protections)
- Households where everyone is 62 or older, 18 or younger, or permanently disabled can join CONCERN; enrolled customers are not disconnected from November 1 to April 15. [Con Edison cold and heat protections](https://www.coned.com/en/accounts-billing/payment-plans-assistance/special-services/cold-heat-protections)
- For spoilage claims, food losses up to $280 need only an itemized list; losses from $280 to $655 also need receipts, price labels or photos, and medicine needs a pharmacy receipt. [Con Edison spoilage claim](https://www.coned.com/en/services-and-outages/claim-form/residential-spoilage-claim-form)
- Resource Direct (1-212-358-4565) helps with My Account and payment assistance. [Con Edison payment plans and assistance](https://www.coned.com/en/accounts-billing/payment-plans-assistance)

## Traps and fine print

- After a final disconnection notice, DPS says not to use its online complaint form; call the hotline at 800-342-3355 (7:30 a.m.-7:30 p.m., Monday-Friday). [NY DPS: file a complaint](https://dps.ny.gov/file-complaint)
- Spoilage from outages caused by storms is not paid. [Con Edison spoilage claim](https://www.coned.com/en/services-and-outages/claim-form/residential-spoilage-claim-form)
- Pay only through Con Edison's own channels: it names conEd.com/GuestPayment and webpayments.billmatrix.com/ConEdResidential for card payments. Search ads for "Make A Bill Payment" sites are not Con Edison. [Con Edison: beware of scammers](https://www.coned.com/en/safety/energy-safety/beware-of-scammers)

## Scams that target customers

- Con Edison does not accept prepaid gift cards, cryptocurrency, wire transfers or cash apps such as Venmo, Zelle or PayPal, in person, by phone or by text. [Con Edison: beware of scammers](https://www.coned.com/en/safety/energy-safety/beware-of-scammers)
- Callers spoof caller ID, ask for the account number and threaten shutoff within an hour. Account numbers changed from 15 to 11 digits, which scammers may use as a pretext. [Con Edison: beware of scammers](https://www.coned.com/en/safety/energy-safety/beware-of-scammers)
- Look-alike sites such as con3d.com and c0edison.com, and the payment site makeabillpayment.com with 1-888-479-3560, are not Con Edison. [Con Edison: beware of scammers](https://www.coned.com/en/safety/energy-safety/beware-of-scammers)
- Con Edison says it will never ask for personally identifiable information. Real employees carry photo ID with their name and employee number; verify at 1-800-75-CONED. [Con Edison news release, November 2025](https://www.coned.com/en/about-us/media-center/news/2025/11-20/awareness-is-your-best-defense)
- SmartCharge NY never asks for card details through a QR code; only conEd.com/smartcharge and scny.ev.energy are real program pages. [Con Edison: beware of scammers](https://www.coned.com/en/safety/energy-safety/beware-of-scammers)