Office of the Ohio Consumers' Counsel - Your Residential Utility Consumer Advocate

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Energy Choice: Block the Knock

 

You DO NOT have to open your door when energy marketers come knocking. Your doorstep is not the place where you can make well-informed decisions about buying energy. In fact, a rash decision on energy supply may cost you hundreds of dollars. To protect consumers, OCC recommends Ohio ban door-to-door sales for marketing energy.

Accepting an offer at the door from an energy marketer can be costly. Block the Knock

Learn more about Energy Choice with OCC’s How to Make Wise Energy Choices fact sheet at https://www.occ.ohio.gov/factsheet/wise-energy-choices.

The Public Utilities Commission of Ohio (PUCO) requires Ohio energy marketers to list their electric and natural gas offers on its Energy Choice Ohio website—also known as "Apples to Apples." Learn how to spot a bad apple at https://www.occ.ohio.gov/content/how-spot-bad-apple.

See below for more tips about your rights regarding energy marketers.

Want to be left alone?

You don’t have to open your home’s front door when energy marketers come knocking. And you have the right to contact your electric and gas utilities to stop them from sharing your personal information.

Consumers should use caution when confronted with door-to-door sales of energy. Your best option may be to block the knock, by not answering your door.  Decisions about buying energy are complex and best made after careful research of information not immediately available with a marketer at your door. Do NOT provide a copy of your utility bill or share any personal identifying information with someone at your door.  Unfortunately, there have been instances where deceptive marketers have used consumers’ information to enroll them in an energy contract without their permission, known as slamming

If you believe you have been slammed, or you see a company listed that you do not recognize on your electric or natural gas bill, contact your utility to ask about the change. If the change is indeed slamming you should ask to be returned to your original agreement and that any charges related to the unwanted switch be removed from your bill. You should also contact the PUCO and let them know you were slammed and by what company. You should not be charged any penalties by the slamming and your account should be credited for any switching fees.

Ohio Administrative Code sections 4901:1-21-06(D)(1)(j) and 4901:1-29-05(E)(3) require a marketer to leave the customer’s premises when requested to do so by the customer. 

The Northeast Ohio Public Energy Council's (NOPEC) Do Not Knock registry (available in some communities) helps keep door-to-door solicitors away. View this NOPEC web page for information about Do Not Knock: https://www.nopec.org/residents/do-not-knock/. Your local government may have additional information about no-soliciting signage or programs to limit door-to-door sales in your community.  

When reviewing your energy choices, consider choosing your utility’s “standard offer” (also known as the default rate), or a government aggregation program, for your energy needs. Learn more about government aggregation at https://www.occ.ohio.gov/factsheet/aggregation. Your natural gas utility’s “standard offer” has been an economical and conservative way to purchase natural gas. Both electric and gas standard offers provide market-based prices established by competitive auctions.

Beware of scammers trying to steal your money claiming to be with your utility company. You can learn more about protecting your family from utility-related scams, at this OCC web page: https://www.occ.ohio.gov/factsheet/how-avoid-utility-related-scams-and-fraud.

You have the right to remove your name from marketing lists

Finally, you have the right to STOP electric and gas utilities from sharing your personal contact information with energy marketers. Below are phone numbers and websites for contacting your utilities to enforce your right to keep your personal contact information private from energy marketers. 

File a complaint with the PUCO

If you've been switched to another energy provider without your permission, or if you feel pressured or have been pressured into switching your energy provider, only to find out later that it didn’t save you money as the sales person had promised, you may contact the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio (PUCO) at https://puco.ohio.gov/wps/portal/gov/puco/help-center/file-a-complaint or at 1-800-686-7826 (toll free in Ohio).

Customer Service Telephone numbers:

Electric:

  • AEP – 1-800-672-2231
  • AES Ohio (formerly Dayton Power & Light) – 1-800-433-8500
  • Duke Energy Ohio – 1-800-544-6900
  • The Illuminating Company – 1-800-589-3101
  • Ohio Edison – 1-800-633-4766
  • Toledo Edison – 1-800-447-3333

Natural Gas:

  • Columbia Gas of Ohio – 1-800-344-4077
  • Dominion East Ohio – 1-800-362-7557
  • Duke Energy Ohio – 1-800-544-6900
  • CenterPoint Energy (formerly Vectren) – 1-800-227-1376

Utility Websites:

Electric:

Natural Gas:

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