Checked 22 Oct 2026
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How do I complain to TNEB?
Report it on Minnagam (94987 94987, call or WhatsApp) or TNPDCL's complaints portal, and put it in writing to your section's Assistant Engineer. TNPDCL must reply within 10 days. If it does not fix the problem, go to the Consumer Grievance Redressal Forum, which decides within 45 days, and then to the Electricity Ombudsman.
Write your complaint
Nothing you type here leaves your phone. It only fills in the letter.
Your letter
What happens next
- Pay the bill by the due date, under protest: the rules do not let you hold back any part of it.
- TNPDCL must fix it before your next bill, or pay you ₹300.
- If not, file with the forum (CGRF) for your area.
Rules from TNERC Distribution Standards of Performance Regulations, as amended to 31 Mar 2024, TN Electricity Supply Code amendment, 2 Sep 2023 and TNERC Consumer Grievance Redressal Forum and Ombudsman Regulations, consolidated to 31 Mar 2024.
In short
- Register the problem on Minnagam (94987 94987, call or WhatsApp, 24 hours), TNPDCL's complaints portal or the TNEB app, and note the complaint number.
- Put it in writing to the Assistant Engineer of your section office. TNPDCL must reply within 10 days and send a full response within 20.
- A billing complaint made before the due date must be resolved before your next bill. Pay the bill under protest meanwhile; you cannot hold any of it back.
- If the section office and the officer above it do not fix it, file with the Consumer Grievance Redressal Forum (CGRF). It must decide within 30 days, and never more than 45.
- Appeal to the Electricity Ombudsman within 30 days of the forum's order, or if the forum has not replied in 50 days. The Ombudsman decides within three months.
Where to complain
| Where | How |
|---|---|
| Minnagam, 24 hours | Call or WhatsApp 94987 94987, or dial 1912. Best for power cuts and voltage. |
| TNPDCL complaints portal | CCMS, after registering your mobile number. Supply, meter, billing, payment and application complaints. |
| TNEB app | Grievances, for power failure, billing and meter complaints, with a number to track. |
| Section office | A written letter to the Assistant Engineer. Keep a copy with the office's seal or the complaint number. |
| Consumer Grievance Redressal Forum | In writing, by email or on TNPDCL's CGRF portal, once the office has not fixed it. |
| Electricity Ombudsman | An appeal in writing to TNERC's Ombudsman in Guindy, Chennai, after the forum. |
Every complaint, oral or written, must be registered and given a unique number. When an engineer attends a supply complaint, they give you a slip to sign; keep it, because a later complaint about non-compliance needs a copy.
TNPDCL Consumer Complaints Monitoring System; TNPDCL Consumer Grievance Redressal Forum portal; DT Next, 11 Aug 2026; News Today, 9 Oct 2026; TNERC Distribution Standards of Performance Regulations, as amended to 31 Mar 2024, regulation 20.
How long TNPDCL has
| Complaint | Time limit | If it is late |
|---|---|---|
| Any written complaint | Reply in 10 days, full response in 20 | ₹50 a day, up to ₹500 |
| Wrong bill, before the due date | Before the next bill | ₹300 |
| Arithmetic error, 3 days before the due date | By the due date | ₹300 |
| Defective or burnt meter | Replaced in 7 days | ₹200 a day, up to ₹2,000 |
| Meter test you asked for | 30 days; you pay if the meter is correct | Escalate |
| Fault on your connection, corporation area | 3 hours (9 urban, 12 rural) | ₹100 per 6 hours, up to ₹2,000 |
| Distribution transformer failure, corporation area | 24 hours (48 elsewhere) | ₹100 per 6 hours, up to ₹2,000 |
| Voltage outside limits, no new equipment needed | 48 hours | ₹100 a day, up to ₹2,000 |
Outside corporation areas, supply complaints made between 6 pm and 8 am count from 8 am the next day. Time limits for new connections, name transfers and load or tariff changes are in those guides.
TNERC Distribution Standards of Performance Regulations, as amended to 31 Mar 2024, regulations 10, 11, 12, 15, 17 and 21; TN Electricity Supply Code amendment, 2 Sep 2023, regulation 7(9).
The steps, in order
- Register it and get a number. Minnagam, the portal or the app. For a power cut, this is usually enough.
- Write to the Assistant Engineer. State your service connection number, what is wrong, what you want, and attach proof: the bill, a photo of the meter's kWh reading, the application receipt. Use the letter above.
- Go one level up. If the section office does not fix it, write to the next officer up; TNPDCL must name one for your area. The rules expect you to take it higher before the forum.
- File with the forum (CGRF). In writing, by email or online, in the forum's format. It acknowledges within 5 working days, decides whether to admit it within 10, and must pass an order within 30 days, at most 45. You can attend the hearing yourself or send a representative.
- Appeal to the Ombudsman within 30 days of the order, or if the forum has not replied within 50 days. The Ombudsman can try to settle it and otherwise passes an award within three months. TNPDCL must comply; not complying attracts penalty proceedings before TNERC under section 142 of the Electricity Act.
The forum does not hear cases of unauthorised use of electricity or theft; those follow separate assessment and appeal rules.
TNERC Distribution Standards of Performance Regulations, as amended to 31 Mar 2024, regulation 20; TNERC Consumer Grievance Redressal Forum and Ombudsman Regulations, consolidated to 31 Mar 2024, regulations 5 to 8, 17(4)(a) and 22.
The forum and the Ombudsman
Each forum has three members: a TNPDCL officer of at least Superintending Engineer rank as chair, a finance or legal professional nominated by the district collector, and a consumer-side member nominated by TNERC. TNPDCL must set up enough forums that nobody travels more than 100 km to one. In June 2026 TNERC told TNPDCL to fill vacancies in 12 forums, including Chennai North and Chennai West, some empty for over a year.
The Ombudsman sits at TNERC: 4th Floor, SIDCO Corporate Office Building, Thiru-vi-ka Industrial Estate, Guindy, Chennai 600 032; [email protected]; 044 2953 5816. Orders are published on TNERC's website; it listed 70 for 2026 by 22 October.
If the forum ordered you to pay an amount and you appeal, you deposit 25% of it first. Once you ask the forum for interim relief, your supply cannot be cut except as the Act, regulations and orders allow; in a dispute over current charges, the forum grants interim relief only after you deposit an amount set by the Electricity Act.
TNERC Consumer Grievance Redressal Forum and Ombudsman Regulations, consolidated to 31 Mar 2024, regulations 3, 7(12) to 7(15), 8 and 22; DT Next, 10 Jun 2026; TNERC, Ombudsman orders.
What people report
"The board's own staff got the readings wrong. Why should I pay?"
An October 2026 Ombudsman case: a house was under-billed for 11 bills because staff recorded the readings wrongly, and the owner was then asked for about ₹77,000. The Ombudsman agreed the error was the staff's but held that the units actually used are payable; TNPDCL had allowed six monthly instalments. Check the reading on every bill, so a gap never builds up.
"I could not get through to Minnagam."
In October 2026 a fault in BSNL's network stopped calls to 94987 94987, and TNPDCL asked people to send complaints on WhatsApp to the same number, with the consumer number, locality and the problem; photos can be added.
"Is the forum even working?"
In June 2026 TNERC found vacancies in 12 forums, some open for over a year, and told TNPDCL to fill them; the rules say a post should not stay empty for more than two months. A forum can still sit with two members including the chair. If yours misses the 45-day limit, the 50-day rule lets you go to the Ombudsman.
Composites of Ombudsman orders and news reports from 2026, summarised in our words. We have not named anyone. Sources: Tamil Nadu Electricity Ombudsman, A.P. No. 43 of 2026, 22 Oct 2026, News Today, 9 Oct 2026, DT Next, 10 Jun 2026.
Questions people ask
What is the TNEB complaint number?
Minnagam, TNPDCL's 24-hour centre, on 94987 94987. You can call it or message it on WhatsApp; when calls were disrupted in October 2026, TNPDCL asked people to use WhatsApp on the same number. 1912 also reaches it. Keep your service connection number ready and note the complaint number you are given.
How do I complain to TNEB online?
On TNPDCL's Consumer Complaints Monitoring System (ccms.tangedco.org), after registering with your mobile number. It takes power failure, voltage, meter, billing, payment and application complaints. The TNEB app also takes power failure, billing and meter complaints. Both give you a number to track.
How do I complain about a high TNEB bill?
Write to the Assistant Engineer of your section office before the due date, with a photo of your meter's kWh reading and the bill. TNPDCL must resolve a billing complaint made before the due date before your next bill. Pay the bill by the due date under protest; the rules do not let you hold any of it back. The letter tool above writes the complaint for you.
What is CGRF in TNEB?
The Consumer Grievance Redressal Forum: a three-member panel for each area, chaired by a TNPDCL officer of Superintending Engineer rank, with a member nominated by the district collector and one by TNERC. You file there, in writing, online or by email, when the section office and the next officer up have not fixed your complaint. It must decide within 30 days, and never more than 45.
How do I appeal to the Electricity Ombudsman in Tamil Nadu?
Within 30 days of the forum's order, or if the forum has not replied within 50 days. Write to the Tamil Nadu Electricity Ombudsman, 4th Floor, SIDCO Corporate Office Building, Thiru-vi-ka Industrial Estate, Guindy, Chennai 600 032 ([email protected], 044 2953 5816). If the forum ordered you to pay an amount, you first deposit 25% of it. The Ombudsman must decide within three months.
Can TNPDCL disconnect me while my complaint is pending?
Once you ask the forum for interim relief, supply cannot be cut except as the law allows. In a dispute over current charges, the forum asks you to deposit an amount set by the Electricity Act before it grants interim relief. Paying the bill under protest by the due date avoids the question.
Is there a fee to complain to the forum or the Ombudsman?
The regulations set no fee for filing with the forum or appealing to the Ombudsman. Two deposits can apply: 25% of any amount the forum ordered you to pay, if you appeal; and, if you ask the forum for interim relief in a dispute over current charges, a deposit set by the Electricity Act.
Read next
Sources
- TNERC Distribution Standards of Performance Regulations, as amended to 31 Mar 2024. Complaint handling (reg 20), billing complaints (10), meters (11), restoration (12), voltage (15), replies (17), compensation (21).
- TNERC Consumer Grievance Redressal Forum and Ombudsman Regulations, consolidated to 31 Mar 2024. Forum decides within 30 to 45 days; Ombudsman appeal within 30 days of the order or after 50 days without a reply; 25% deposit; award within three months.
- TN Electricity Supply Code amendment, 2 Sep 2023. Meter test within 30 days (reg 7(9)).
- TNPDCL Consumer Complaints Monitoring System; TNPDCL Consumer Grievance Redressal Forum portal, read 22 Oct 2026.
- Tamil Nadu Electricity Ombudsman, A.P. No. 43 of 2026, 22 Oct 2026; TNERC, Ombudsman orders.
- News: DT Next, 11 Aug 2026, News Today, 9 Oct 2026, DT Next, 10 Jun 2026.
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