To help you avoid being the victim of fraudulent activities, we've provided information on the most common scams targeting utility customers below. You can also significantly improve the security of your online My Account by signing up for 2-factor Authentication, a method that requires a password and an authentication code in order to access your account.
If you need help paying your bills, please visit our customer assistance webpage.
If you believe that you have been contacted by someone impersonating an electric, natural gas, or water company representative:
- Hang up the phone, or close the door, and call your utility company.
- Delete all suspicious emails, texts or instant messages that offer "payment programs" for utilities or require immediate action to verify personal or banking information.
- Ignore suspicious requests for personal information such as bank account numbers, user names and passwords, credit card numbers, or Social Security numbers.
- Do not give the caller or visitor ANY form of a prepaid card, such as a Green Dot card, a wire transfer, gift cards for stores, cards for online services like Apple iTunes, or any other form of payment that may be difficult for law enforcement officials to trace.
- Contact your local police through the non-emergency telephone number, your state attorney general's office through its toll-free number, and/or contact the Federal Trade Commission.
- Remember, you can always check the status of your SoCalGas account or pay your latest bill by logging on to My Account .
Common Scams
Calls that appear to be coming from SoCalGas, or "Spoofing"
What is caller ID spoofing? Caller ID spoofing is a practice in which a caller, using special phone equipment and technology, deliberately falsifies information to mask the true origin of the call. The call appears to be from SoCalGas or a trusted customer partner, when in reality the caller has no association with SoCalGas. From there, the caller may try to sell you products, collect personal information or say a payment is due on your gas bill when it's not.
Tips to Protect You From a Spoofing Call
- SoCalGas will never ask for credit card information over the phone.
- Never provide your gas bill to anyone you don't know.
- Never provide your My Account login credentials.
Signs of a Spoofing Call
- Calls are made multiple times per day.
- Customers are asked about their gas usage or meter information.
- Caller provides recommendations for purchasing alternative energy sources.
- Customers are asked to provide their Social Security number or other personal information.
Demands to Immediately Pay Your Utility Bill with Pre-paid Cash Cards, Visa Cards, etc.
This scam starts with a phone call or with utility imposters going door-to-door telling customers that if they don't pay their energy bills immediately with pre-paid cash cards, their natural gas, electric or water service will be turned off.
Once the card is purchased, customers are directed to another phone number where information is obtained from the card and the cash value is removed.
Government Programs to Pay Utility Bills
In this scam, someone contacts you with a claim that a "special government program" can help pay your utility bills. Thieves then supply customers with a phony bank routing number to pay their bills online. There is no such federal program, and money collected by these criminals is not applied to customer utility accounts.
Scam victims have been contacted by individuals going door-to-door, making phone calls, posting fliers, unsolicited emails, text-messages and social media contacts.
Customers are often asked to also provide sensitive information, such as social security numbers, which presents an identity-theft risk.
Email Bills from Other Utilities Demanding Payment
This scam involves suspicious emails that appear to be bills sent by another utility company. The email may contain some valid information about you that is publicly available such as your name or address.
Borders
no-border
Recognizing SoCalGas Employees and Impostors
We encourage you to be vigilant and question anyone who presents themselves as a representative of SoCalGas.
- All SoCalGas employees on company business are required to carry a SoCalGas photo ID badge.
- SoCalGas workers who perform in-home appliance services, work on gas meters or work on gas pipelines wear uniforms. However, some employees do not. Always ask for identification before letting someone inside your home.
- The majority of our authorized employees will always be in a uniform with our company logo, carry an official employee badge, and drive a company car.
- Contractors certified to represent the Energy Savings Assistance Program must present a valid authorized contractor photo ID badge. To learn more go to the "Recognizing Your Authorized Contractor "Recognizing Your Authorized Contractor" section on this page.
- Most of the time we visit your home in response to a service request. If no one scheduled an appointment, call us before allowing anyone inside your home.
- To verify the authenticity of anyone claiming to be a representative of SoCalGas, ask for proper identification or call headquarters at 1-800-427-2200 (or 1-800-342-4545 in Spanish).
Search Engine Scam
A search engine scam occurs when a customer uses a search engine, like Google, to find the website or phone number for a utility, like SoCalGas, to make a payment. An unofficial SoCalGas website or an unofficial SoCalGas partner could show up at the top of search results, which may be another company misrepresenting itself. These fake websites may take a "payment" or provide a phone number to the customer to pay by phone. Over the phone, a customer could be requested to provide billing, personal information, and a credit card to make a "payment," but this money is not sent to SoCalGas, but goes to the scammer instead. Tips to Protect You from a Search Engine Scam
- Find the official ways to pay your bill on our Ways to Pay webpage or a printed bill.
- Save our contact information in your cell phone or near your phone.
- Remember, we will never ask for credit card or banking information over the phone.
Earthquake Valve Scam
Be on alert of a possible earthquake valve scam.
Learn More . Opens in a new window.
Your Payment Options
As a SoCalGas customer, you have multiple payment options:
- Online
- Pre-enrolled direct debit
- By mail
- In person at an authorized payment location
If you're behind on your payment, we'll provide past due notification in writing before shutting off your service for non-payment. If you call us about your bill, we will always be able to provide account information and your exact past due balance.
Have You Been Affected?
If you've provided any personal information, such as your bank account or social security number to someone other than a SoCalGas representative, you may be a victim of identity theft. We recommend that any SoCalGas customers who have fallen victim to this scam report the incident to their local law enforcement agency as well as the U.S. Federal Trade Commission's fraud and identity theft pages to help prevent you or others from being another victim.