Complaints
This profile includes complaints for Nicor Gas Company's headquarters and its corporate-owned locations. To view all corporate locations, see
Customer Complaints Summary
- 116 total complaints in the last 3 years.
- 36 complaints closed in the last 12 months.
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Submit a ComplaintThe complaint text that is displayed might not represent all complaints filed with BBB. Some consumers may elect to not publish the details of their complaints, some complaints may not meet BBB's standards for publication, or BBB may display a portion of complaints when a high volume is received for a particular business.
Initial Complaint
Date:01/10/2023
Type:Status:AnsweredMore info
Complaint statuses
- Resolved:
- The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.
- Unresolved:
- The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.
- Answered:
- The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.
- Unanswered:
- The business failed to respond to the dispute.
- Unpursuable:
- BBB is unable to locate the business.
Nicor Rate delivery charge increase. The bill keeps getting increased as I am on the guaranteed rate plan, clearly the rate is not guaranteed. A bill that initially was $143.00 monthly has increased to $200.00 in which i spoke to Nicor regarding and was given the $20.00 credit allotment for my bills. As I appreciate that, the fact remains, this won't stay the same, an increase seems inevitable for the so called guaranteed rate plan. How can this be? From $143.00 to nearly $200.00 is major.
Business Response
Date: 01/11/2023
Customer was contacted and billing was explained she thanked me for the call. This matter is considered closed.Initial Complaint
Date:01/09/2023
Type:Status:AnsweredMore info
Complaint statuses
- Resolved:
- The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.
- Unresolved:
- The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.
- Answered:
- The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.
- Unanswered:
- The business failed to respond to the dispute.
- Unpursuable:
- BBB is unable to locate the business.
THIS HAPPEN IN OUR RENTAL PLACE IN ******** **. WE EVICT OUR TENANT AT THE END OF OCT. NOW NICOR IS TRYING TO COLLECT THE *** **** FROM **. THE **** WAS NEVER IN OUR NAME WHILE THE RENTER. LIVED THEIR. WE PUT THE **** IN OUR NAME IN DEC. SO NOW THEY ARE TRYING TO COLLECT AUG. SEPT. OCT. NOV. *** **** FROM US. WE GAVE THEM ALL THE INFORMATION ABOUT THE EVICTION AND WHEN THEY LEFT. THIS IS NOT OUR ****S BUT THEIRS. THEY NEED TO GO AFTER THEM NOT US. THEY OWE US $8000 DOLLARS THEY CAN HAVE THAT **** THANK YOUBusiness Response
Date: 01/10/2023
Customer was contacted today; this was a landlord/tenant issue. ****** resolved under another complaint.Customer Answer
Date: 01/11/2023
Complaint: 18712330this is not a landlord and tentant problem. The problem is they want us to pay the ***********************. I have sent them many papers showing that renters were in the rental for the time this bill. They will no listen and keep changing their answer. When do we have to pay another person's bill this IS AMERICAN. We keep going around and they would not answer my EMAIL OR CALLS. When does NICOR MAKE OTHER PEOPLE PAY OTHER PEOPLE'S BILL. NEED SOMEBODY IN NICOR TO PONY UP AND ANSWER THIS. I DO LIVE IN ******* RIGHT
THANK YOU
*****
Business Response
Date: 01/13/2023
Nothing further to add customer has been contacted, billing was reviewed, and corrections were made.Initial Complaint
Date:12/21/2022
Type:Status:AnsweredMore info
Complaint statuses
- Resolved:
- The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.
- Unresolved:
- The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.
- Answered:
- The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.
- Unanswered:
- The business failed to respond to the dispute.
- Unpursuable:
- BBB is unable to locate the business.
Around June, we had Nicor contact us to inform us they needed to have us arrange for our 2 inside gas meters to be moved outside. They said that they had a contractor that could do this for free, Pipe Strong, and that we just had to call it in to schedule. While it was a minor inconvenience to be the point of contact for this, it was understandable. Let the record show, that moving the meters was not a service we requested or wanted. We arranged for the work to be done and it was done quickly with no seeming problems. However, after 2 weeks we turned our furnace on for the first time in the season in late September and my nightmare began. We had a gas leak that was seemed to be caused by a burner being left on. A Nicor tech was kind enough to come by and help us with that. However, when they examined our pipes in the basement, they discovered several leaks and said they could not turn on the gas until all of these were fixed. It was suspicious to us that there would be leaks as for several years up to that point, someone had lived in that basement and never once smelled gas or been uncomfortable. However now suddenly after this work is done we have all these leaks in spots that were very close/connected to the new pipes Pipe Strong had installed. We got our own plumber out and they immediately noticed how many of the pipes installed were not in code, the contractor had mixed water and gas piping which is apparently a no-no, were not level and lacked unions. So they would have to cut out and reinstall pipe over their shoddy work. The bill was over $1,000. We immediately filed a claim with Nicor. Our adjustor has been incredibly unresponsive. I have received communication from her once in almost 3 months. She has not returned any of my phone calls and I have a chain of 8 unanswered emails and to date have no idea how Nicor plans to handle this. Please, allow me to follow up on my claim after the work you ordered has led to dire consequence.Business Response
Date: 12/22/2022
I am sorry for the lack of communication you are receiving from our ****************** Our records show that a Claims Supervisor attempted to speak with you on 12/21/22 and left a message that included their contact information. Also our Claims Hotline has changed to ************ and select option 2.Customer Answer
Date: 12/22/2022
Complaint: 18622825
I am rejecting this response because:While I did receive and miss a call from your representative, she was totally misinformed about the situation and thought I am trying to file a new claim instead of following up to get any information on an existing one. One top of that she is out of the office until next week starting today. I would like to know why our agent, ******************* does not return emails or phone calls and if possible request someone new on my case. This has been an extremely costly and time consuming ordeal.
Sincerely,
*****************************Business Response
Date: 12/28/2022
In an effort to address your concerns, your feedback has been forwarded to our claims department for further review. I am sorry for the lack of communication you are receiving from our ****************** Our records show that a Claims Supervisor attempted to speak with you on 12/21/22 and left a message that included their contact information. Also our Claims Hotline has changed to ************ and select option 2.Customer Answer
Date: 01/02/2023
Complaint: 18622825
I am rejecting this response because:the amount of form letter responses is somewhat insulting. I have already acknowledged the call from *****. I can now soundly add her, along with *********************, to my growing list of contacts in your claims department who do not respond to phone calls. Since the initial missed call, I have left her 3 voicemails to no response. In the first place, she was wholly unaware of my situation as per voicemail from the get go. Beyond that she has been repeatedly out of office, which i understand from the holidays. However, I have called her on the days when her outgoing message says she is in the office and she will not pick up and has had made 0 effort to get in contact with me since. I am aware that a customer care team member has been assigned to my case and that I should hear from him tomorrow. If I do not, I will have no choice but to seek further action through the Illinois ******************* and after that with my local representative in the General Assembly.
Sincerely,
*****************************Initial Complaint
Date:12/21/2022
Type:Status:AnsweredMore info
Complaint statuses
- Resolved:
- The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.
- Unresolved:
- The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.
- Answered:
- The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.
- Unanswered:
- The business failed to respond to the dispute.
- Unpursuable:
- BBB is unable to locate the business.
in the month of Oct my bill was 50:$ in the month of Dec my bill was ****** and now my bill went up to ****** I have been in my house for over 10 years and always paid my bill on time and i am on a fix income,his So how do Nicor Gas expect me to pay this inflated bill and now they want me to go on a budget .can someone please help me ??????Business Response
Date: 12/22/2022
Thank you for bringing your issue to our attention. A Customer Relations Representative will contact you by phone to provide more insight of your billing and options.Initial Complaint
Date:12/13/2022
Type:Status:AnsweredMore info
Complaint statuses
- Resolved:
- The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.
- Unresolved:
- The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.
- Answered:
- The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.
- Unanswered:
- The business failed to respond to the dispute.
- Unpursuable:
- BBB is unable to locate the business.
My bills with Nicor gas went dramatically up even tho my thermostat is hardly onBusiness Response
Date: 12/14/2022
Matter was addressed with a previous complaint. Nothing further to add. We had explained their usage is consistent with their historical usage however the gas cost increase has caused them to experience higher bills.Customer Answer
Date: 12/15/2022
Complaint: 18566161
I am rejecting this response because:
Sincerely,
Zen Elbahari totally disagree with their response
I call them every year about the same issue! which is the sudden increase from month to month! This year was very different because firstly the weather was mild here in *******, September and October my heat was completely off and I hardly cook! But still the jump in the price occurred! I called them and they always say the same excuse! Gas prices! I understand the gas prices went up the past few years! But what if the thermostat is off! Where is this coming from!! I completely believe the bills are not based on the meter reading but on assumptions and this is very unfair!
Business Response
Date: 12/15/2022
Nothing further to add customer had been contacted. Customer filed an ICC complaint and is being handled accordingly.Initial Complaint
Date:12/02/2022
Type:Status:AnsweredMore info
Complaint statuses
- Resolved:
- The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.
- Unresolved:
- The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.
- Answered:
- The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.
- Unanswered:
- The business failed to respond to the dispute.
- Unpursuable:
- BBB is unable to locate the business.
Opening my business to another location. Called commercial sales (11/15/22), told to fill out online application to start service. It will take from 2 to 5 business days to get started. Since it was freezing out, I had phone calls and told there was nothing I could do but wait, and there are 100 people ahead of me. After a week I receive an email (11/22/22) saying SS# doesn't match owner's name and to go back online and start the application over again. Frustrating website, since where it asks for your SS#, it is Xed out so you can't see what you input. Horrible service that I was notified by email and not a phone call to see where the mistake might have been. After resubmitting the application, several days later I receive an email (12/1/22) saying that they will be out the following day to turn on the gas between ****.I go to the empty building at 8am (12/2/22) and wait until 12 and nobody shows up. I call, spend 30 minutes on hold, and the service rep says that the technician showed up at 8 and left since nobody was there. Even though I was. My phone number is on the account, all they had to do was call me. I asked why nobody called me and she said I didn't **** that on my online application (which isn't even an option. Confirmed with the supervisor on my next call below) I requested them to come back out so our pipes don't freeze but they said they can only come out the following day on Saturday but no time period. I would have to wait all day for them. I asked to speak to a supervisor and was hung up on.I called back, spoke to a supervisor who then told me that the tech was there between 10:19-10:26. So either he lied to me, the other service rep lied to me, or the technician lied about coming out. Again, I was at the location the entire time. This is Friday and now the soonest they can get someone out is Monday, ****. The supervisor just fed me garbage and didn't give a c*** Horrible customer service and a horrible **********************.Business Response
Date: 12/05/2022
Appointment scheduled. 12/05/2022 08:00AM to 12/05/2022 12:00PM, nothing further to add, customer was contacted.Customer Answer
Date: 12/06/2022
Complaint: 18515111
I am rejecting this response because:Yes, I had to reschedule with them, and I called them to reschedule since they lied and didn't show up for the original date and time. My complaint isn't about getting service, it is about being lied to by this company.
Sincerely,
***************************Business Response
Date: 12/06/2022
Nothing further to add.Initial Complaint
Date:11/12/2022
Type:Status:AnsweredMore info
Complaint statuses
- Resolved:
- The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.
- Unresolved:
- The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.
- Answered:
- The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.
- Unanswered:
- The business failed to respond to the dispute.
- Unpursuable:
- BBB is unable to locate the business.
On 11/9 I manually made my bill online with a different payment method because I barely had enough funds for food to feed my kids. On 11/11 I checked my bank account and they took the payment out even though I made it on 11/9. Mins you my payment isnt due until the 14th of each month! I contacted customer service and they were no help. I asked for a refund of one of the payments and was denied saying it would be applied to my next months bill. THATS NOT HELPFUL!Business Response
Date: 11/14/2022
Customer was contacted, matter has been addressed.Customer Answer
Date: 11/15/2022
Complaint: 18394948
I am rejecting this response because: I was called and told to contact them 10 business days after something, not sure why I have to wait 10 business days, for a refund when a refund should have automatically been applied to my bank account.
Sincerely,
*****************************Business Response
Date: 11/17/2022
Nothing further to add, customer was notified of our processes.Customer Answer
Date: 11/18/2022
Complaint: 18394948
I am rejecting this response because: I did contact **************** and was advised that my extra payment I made will apply to the next months bill and if there is a credit then I would get a refund of that. No. I need a refund of the full amount I made! This company is TRULY awful to deal with.
Sincerely,
*****************************Initial Complaint
Date:11/08/2022
Type:Status:AnsweredMore info
Complaint statuses
- Resolved:
- The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.
- Unresolved:
- The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.
- Answered:
- The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.
- Unanswered:
- The business failed to respond to the dispute.
- Unpursuable:
- BBB is unable to locate the business.
Nicor Gas cut my gas from the main pipe on the street on September 27th due to a gas leak. I have called their scheduling department for the past 5 weeks to restore service and they said the supervisor needs to schedule this. I'm a good-standing paying customer. Winter is around the corner, and I still don't have an estimated time of when the property will have the gas service back on. The property location is **** ********* in ************************************. I need your help please to have Nicor look at my work order and schedule this job.Business Response
Date: 11/09/2022
Thank you for bringing this concern to our attention. I am sorry that re-installation of the gas service line and meter were delayed. According to our records, the job check was completed yesterday afternoon and our ********************* made attempts to schedule an appointment with you, this morning. Please contact our *********************.Initial Complaint
Date:11/03/2022
Type:Status:AnsweredMore info
Complaint statuses
- Resolved:
- The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.
- Unresolved:
- The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.
- Answered:
- The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.
- Unanswered:
- The business failed to respond to the dispute.
- Unpursuable:
- BBB is unable to locate the business.
We were renting a property on Elgin @ ********************************** that had the lease up 9/1/22. Service was added to our account with Nicor for our new "owned property as of 7/1/22 and service at previous "rented" property was to discontinue as of 9/1/22. There was emails and phone calls into Nicor to support this and while the service at the new owned property was added to the account and we were billed for usage, the service @ the rental property **********************************, was never discontinued as it was supposed to be on 9/1/22 and we still received a bill. When I called again to dispute this with Nicor I spoke with a rep named **** who said he could do nothing about the charges but could cancel the service moving forward and he would escalate me to supervisor *****. ***** was less than pleasant to deal with and would say or do nothing other than to say there is nothing that she could or would do for the previous bill @ ********************************** even after i explained to her again that the service was to be discontinued as of 9/1/22 and I called in to have that done. Of course she states she has no record of that and the issue was all mine. All I am looking for is for my bill for service at a location that I am clearly not staying at to be reimbursed to me and I do not appreciate the way the entire dispute was handled by supervisor *****. Total of ($102.23). As a valued customer I would think this would be an easy fix on their end especially after my call disputing the charges.Business Response
Date: 11/04/2022
I reviewed the start service request and the additional correspondence we received from you. At that time, you had requested to only have one account number for both addresses and that you would contact Nicor Gas when you moved out of **** ******* in Elgin. Nicor Gas did not receive another request to stop service until 11/03/22. I am sorry that we are unable to backdate your stop date and cancel the billing for your rental address. Nicor Gas requires ten day notice to cancel the gas service according to Rate 1 found in Nicor Gas' Rates and Riders.Initial Complaint
Date:10/31/2022
Type:Status:ResolvedMore info
Complaint statuses
- Resolved:
- The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.
- Unresolved:
- The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.
- Answered:
- The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.
- Unanswered:
- The business failed to respond to the dispute.
- Unpursuable:
- BBB is unable to locate the business.
On September 26, 2022, Nicor performed a gas line and meter replacement at their request due to copper lines being used off the main. During the replacement, Nicor damaged an underground gas line leading to an outdoor appliance. The valve at the meter was turned on and gas continued to leak at the damaged line for around 24-hours. We called Nicor to notify them of the leak and a technician arrived to survey the damage. Service ticket ******** was created on 9/27/2022 and the technician turned off the gas to the appliance and instructed us to file a claim for the repair. We filed our claim via Nicor's website portal on 9/27/2022 and were notified via US mail in a letter dated 9/30 that our reference number is GC217344 and the claim as assigned to a *******************, a Southern Company Gas employee. After emailing and calling the **************** for over a week with no response, we finally received a call back on 10/13/2022 to review the claim. During this call, we reviewed pictures of the damage and I provided a quote from a local contractor to complete the repair. A follow up email was sent to **************** after the call on 10/13/2022, with a copy of the quote send on 10/14/2022. Further follow up emails were sent on 10/17, 10/24 and 10/28 with no response. An auto-reply was received to an email sent on 10/31 stating that **************** was out of the office until 11/7 and she should respond upon her return. As no additional contact was provided and my calls to Nicor's customer service department have been met with multiple transfers to different departments, I am resorting to this complaint. I ask that a representative from Nicor contact me that has the authority to approve the repair cost and credit my account for gas leak.Business Response
Date: 11/11/2022
Thank you for informing us about your concern. I contacted our ***************** and the Claims Adjuster assigned to your case will be in contact with you. I am sorry for not being able to approve your Claim.Customer Answer
Date: 11/11/2022
Better Business Bureau:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ********, and find that this resolution is satisfactory to me.The adjuster has made contact and settled the claim.
Sincerely,
*********************
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