South Carolina

SCWeak

Days notice (electric)

Days notice (gas)

✗

Winter moratorium

✓

Medical exemption

What to do today

If you have a shutoff notice, the date on it is the one that matters. These steps work best in this order.

Call your utility before the date on your notice
Ask for a payment plan or a deferred payment arrangement. Most states require your utility to offer one, and asking before the date is what keeps your service on. The number is on your bill.
Apply for energy assistance
LIHEAP helps with utility bills and does not have to be paid back. Call the national referral line on 1-866-674-6327 weekdays 9am to 7pm Eastern, or visit energyhelp.us.
Dial 211 for local help
211 is free and connects you to local funds for utilities, rent and food. Some local agencies can pay a utility directly to stop a shutoff.
Ask about medical certification
South Carolina recognises medical protections. If anyone in your home has a serious illness or relies on powered medical equipment, a note from a doctor can delay a shutoff. Ask your utility for the form today, because it usually has to be back within days.
Contact the regulator if your utility will not work with you
psc.sc.gov handles complaints against regulated utilities in South Carolina. Filing one can pause a disconnection while it is looked at.

Electric Gas Water Medical Low Income Regulator

Electric Shutoff Rules

Regulatory notice required10 days

Reconnection feeVaries by utility

Seasonal and weather protections: No formal winter moratorium. Commission Regulation 103-352 permits customers to defer disconnection December through March by providing an authorized medical certificate to the utility at least 3 days prior to disconnection (or to the disconnection crew at time of disconnection). This is a medical deferral mechanism rather than a general moratorium.

Major Utilities

Duke Energy Carol…Dominion Energy S…

Duke Energy Carolinas (SC)

Upstate South Carolina, including Greenville, Spartanburg, Anderson, and York counties

10-day notice

The earlier note that disconnection is barred 'when temperature forecasted below 32 degrees F' is not supported by 103-352's text: the actual medical protection (103-352(a)(3)(b)) requires a licensed physician's certificate during December-March, with no temperature threshold, so that claim has been removed rather than repeated

Corrected service area: Duke Energy Carolinas serves the Upstate (18 counties including Greenville, Spartanburg, Anderson, York), not 'most of South Carolina excluding coastal areas' as previously drafted -- that overstated its footprint

Corrected on review. 'SC PSC Rule 141-1,' the citation given for the 10-day figure, does not exist anywhere in the SC Code of Regulations Chapter 103 (searched full text, no match)

the real, current rule is S.C

Code Regs

103-352 ('Procedures for Termination of Service'), last amended eff

May 24, 2024, which requires the electrical utility to mail a termination notice 'not less than ten (10) days prior to termination of service' -- so the 10-day figure itself is correct, only the citation was wrong

Reconnection charges are 'reasonable charges, to be approved by the commission' set per utility (103-339(5))

no Duke-specific dollar figure was located in an accessible tariff on 2026-09-21, so it remains null

Verified 2026-09-21

"R 103 352." law.cornell.edu. Retrieved 21 Sep 2026.

Dominion Energy South Carolina (SCE&G - South Carolina Electric & Gas)

Central South Carolina including the Midlands (Columbia) region and coastal Lowcountry areas

10-day notice

The earlier 'below 32 degrees F' winter-protection claim is not in 103-352's text -- the actual protection is a physician's certificate during December-March with no stated temperature -- and has been removed

Corrected on review, same basis as Duke Energy Carolinas: the cited 'SC PSC Rule 141-1' does not exist in Chapter 103 of the SC Code of Regulations

the correct, current rule is S.C

Code Regs

103-352, requiring at least 10 days' mailed notice before termination for nonpayment (confirmed correct as to the day count)

No Dominion-specific reconnection fee was found in an accessible tariff on 2026-09-21 (103-339(5) leaves the amount to commission-approved utility tariffs), so it remains null

Verified 2026-09-21

"R 103 352." law.cornell.edu. Retrieved 21 Sep 2026.

Gas Shutoff Rules

Regulatory notice required10 days

Reconnection feeVaries by utility

Major Utilities

Dominion Energy S…Piedmont Natural …

Dominion Energy South Carolina Gas (formerly SCE&G Gas)

South Carolina service territory for natural gas

10-day notice

103-452 ('Procedures for Termination of Service,' Article 4), which requires the gas utility to mail a termination notice 'not less than ten days prior to termination of service.' The earlier 'below 32 degrees F' winter-protection claim is not in 103-452's text -- the real protection (103-442(a)(3)(b)) is a physician's certificate during December-March, with no temperature threshold -- and has been removed

Corrected on review

Gas and electric are governed by separate chapters of SC PSC regulations

the 10-day figure was previously (and correctly, as to the number) attributed to a nonexistent 'Rule 141-1' shared with electric

The actual, current rule for gas is S.C

Code Regs

Reconnection charges are 'reasonable charge[s], to be approved by the commission' (103-439(5)), set per utility

no Dominion-specific figure was found in an accessible tariff on 2026-09-21, so it remains null

Verified 2026-09-21

"R 103 452." law.cornell.edu. Retrieved 21 Sep 2026.

Piedmont Natural Gas (South Carolina Operations)

Western South Carolina including Spartanburg, Greenville, Anderson, and Laurens areas

10-day notice

Corrected on review, same basis as Dominion Energy SC Gas: the current rule is S.C

Code Regs

103-452, requiring at least 10 days' mailed notice before termination for gas nonpayment (the day count was correct

'Rule 141-1' is not a real citation)

The earlier 32-degree temperature claim is not supported by 103-452's actual text and has been removed

No Piedmont-specific reconnection fee was found in an accessible tariff on 2026-09-21, so it remains null

Verified 2026-09-21

"R 103 452." law.cornell.edu. Retrieved 21 Sep 2026.

Water Shutoff Rules

Regulatory notice required10 days

Medical & Vulnerable Household Exemptions

Medical certificate (signed by customer and licensed healthcare provider) presented at least 3 days before disconnection — or to the disconnection crew on-site — defers service disconnection December through March. Medical deferral is the primary winter protection mechanism.

Low-Income Protections

Dominion Energy SC and Duke Energy SC operate low-income assistance programs. LIHEAP available through SC DSS. The Office of Regulatory Staff provides consumer representation before the PSC.

Your State Regulator

File a complaint or get help from South Carolina's utility regulator →

Data last verified: 2026-09-21. Rules may change — verify with your state regulator.