LPG users may wait 90 days to update registered mobile number

For years, changing the mobile number on a gas connection felt like a small errand. A visit to the agency, or a few clicks online, and the job was done.

Now that simple change may need patience. LPG customers who want to update the mobile number linked to their gas connection could face a 90-day wait before the new number becomes fully active.

The oil marketing companies say the tighter process aims to stop fraud, fake deliveries, and black-market diversion. For households, though, the change touches something very basic: the next cooking gas cylinder.

LPG number changes get tighter

The new rule affects LPG consumers who want to change the mobile number registered with their domestic gas connection.

Earlier, many customers could update the number quickly through a gas agency or company portal. That quick switch has now become stricter. The updated number may take up to 90 days to become fully active in the system.

The companies have also made biometric verification and KYC checks mandatory. In simple terms, the customer must prove their identity before the mobile number gets changed.

This matters because the registered mobile number is not just a contact detail. It receives booking alerts, delivery updates, OTPs, subsidy messages, and service notices.

For a family that books cylinders through phone, app, or SMS, the number works like the front door to the account.

Why oil companies changed course

The reason is not hard to understand. Gas companies have faced complaints about mobile numbers being changed without the customer’s knowledge.

Once a number gets changed, the wrong person can get booking alerts and delivery messages. In some cases, this can help people divert cylinders or manipulate delivery records.

That is where the black market enters the picture. A domestic LPG cylinder sells at a subsidised or controlled household rate in many cases. If someone diverts cylinders to commercial use, the margin can become tempting.

The new 90-day wait is meant to slow that down. A fraudster who wants quick control of an account will now find it harder.

But tighter security always brings a familiar Indian problem. The honest customer also pays with time, documents, and repeated follow-ups.

A worker who has changed cities, a family that lost access to an old number, or an elderly customer dependent on a child’s phone may all feel the pain first.

Customers may face booking delays

For most households, the worry is practical. What happens if the old number is dead?

If the customer cannot receive messages, they may miss delivery alerts. If an OTP goes to the old number, online booking can become difficult. If a cylinder is marked delivered wrongly, the customer may not know on time.

This is not a small inconvenience in many homes. Cooking gas still runs the kitchen rhythm for millions of Indian families.

In cities, people may manage with food delivery or induction stoves for a day. In smaller towns, the cylinder often decides what gets cooked and when.

The problem may become sharper for customers who already face weak agency service. Many areas have regular complaints about delayed deliveries, helpline issues, and poor response from distributors.

Now add a 90-day number update window to that mix. The rule may protect the account, but it can also trap people who urgently need access restored.

The companies will need to make the transition clear. Customers should know whether their request has been accepted, which number will receive alerts during the waiting period, and how emergency cases will be handled.

Without that clarity, the rule can create confusion at the agency counter.

MyLPG remains the main route

Customers who need to change their number can use the MyLPG portal. The portal asks the customer to choose the gas company linked to the connection.

After that, the user moves to the company’s own login page. The profile section usually contains the option to update the registered mobile number.

The customer enters the new number and verifies it through OTP. Under the new system, however, that does not necessarily mean the number becomes fully active for every service immediately.

This is the key point customers must understand. The online process may accept the change request, but the final activation can still fall under the 90-day rule.

Biometric verification and KYC may also be required. That means customers may need Aadhaar-based verification or a visit to the agency, depending on the company’s process.

For people comfortable with apps, this is manageable. For elderly customers, migrant workers, and families where the connection sits in one person’s name, it can become messy.

The oil companies should make the language on their portals plain. “Request received” and “number active” are not the same thing. Customers deserve to see that difference clearly.

Security versus household convenience

The larger story here is about trust in basic digital systems.

India has pushed millions of everyday services onto mobile numbers. Banking, ration, LPG, UPI, insurance, and government schemes all depend on one small SIM card.

That works beautifully when the number is active, safe, and in the customer’s hands. It becomes fragile when the phone is lost, the SIM expires, or the number gets recycled.

The LPG rule shows the trade-off clearly. Faster updates help genuine customers. Slower updates block fraud. The hard part is designing a system that does both reasonably well.

A blanket 90-day wait may stop some misuse. But it should come with a clean exception process for genuine emergencies.

For example, if a customer can complete biometric verification and KYC in person, the company should explain whether faster activation is possible. If not, it should say so plainly.

Customers also need a simple complaint route. A rule meant to stop fraud should not become another reason to stand in long queues.

The business impact is not dramatic on paper. No company balance sheet will shake because a household waits for a number update. But consumer trust can weaken quietly.

LPG distributors sit at the last mile of a large energy system. If customers feel locked out of their own accounts, the entire chain looks unfriendly.

For ordinary readers, the message is simple. Check the mobile number linked to your gas connection before you actually need a refill. Keep KYC details updated. And if your number has changed, start the process early, because the kitchen does not run on policy timelines.