Who has the skimmer-reporting duty in California?

The registered service agency or agent — not the operator. Under Cal. Bus. & Prof. Code § 12532(i), a service agency or agent that finds a commercial measuring device altered to facilitate fraud reports it to the county sealer within 24 hours and, if it holds the altering device, surrenders it to the county sealer or local law enforcement within 24 hours.

Where does a California skimmer report go?

To the county sealer for the device’s county — one of California’s 58 county weights-and-measures offices. There is no single statewide portal, so the office depends on the county.

California · Bus. & Prof. Code § 12532(i)

In California, the 24-hour skimmer report is the service agency's duty, not the operator's.

This page is for the people who service the equipment — the registered service agencies and agents who repair fuel dispensers and other commercial measuring devices. California puts a specific reporting duty on you, and it is not the same as a merchant obligation.

The duty (Bus. & Prof. Code § 12532(i))

A registered service agency or agent that finds a commercial measuring device altered to facilitate fraud must report it to the county sealer within 24 hours, and, if it holds the altering device, surrender it to the county sealer or local law enforcement within 24 hours. The statute was added by AB 2307 (Stats. 2016, ch. 329) and took effect January 1, 2017. It is deliberately not device-type-specific. Violation of the weights-and-measures provisions is generally a crime.

The recipient is one of 58 county sealers. California routes this through county weights-and-measures, so which office receives your report depends on the device's county — there is no single statewide portal.

California has no merchant-facing pump-security mandate that we found. Unlike Florida or Texas, we did not find a California statute requiring a fuel retailer to install pump security measures; pump-level enforcement runs through county weights-and-measures inspection. This page does not create or imply a merchant obligation — the § 12532(i) duty is the service agency's.

What SkimGuard gives a service agency

A timestamped record of the discovery and of the report you make, and a prepared packet — device identity, county, the discovery, photos — assembled for the county sealer. You file it; SkimGuard prepares it. It does not report to the county sealer for you and does not determine your compliance.

Read the statute

Cal. Bus. & Prof. Code § 12532 (see subsection (i)). Confirm the current text and your county sealer's intake before relying on it.

Questions

Who has the reporting duty in California?

The registered service agency or agent — not the operator. Under Bus. & Prof. Code § 12532(i), a service agency or agent that finds a device altered to facilitate fraud reports it to the county sealer within 24 hours.

Where does the report go?

To the county sealer for the device's county — one of California's 58 county weights-and-measures offices. If you hold the altering device, you surrender it to the county sealer or local law enforcement within 24 hours.

Does California require pump security measures of the merchant?

We did not find a California merchant-facing pump-security mandate. Pump-level enforcement runs through county weights-and-measures inspection. This page is about the service agency's § 12532(i) reporting duty, not a merchant obligation.

SkimGuard helps you document your inspections and prepare your own report; it does not file reports for you and does not determine legal compliance — your obligations are set by the cited statutes and your assessor, agency, or counsel. Skimmer detection is wireless and probabilistic: a device that transmits no signal is not found by any wireless method, and a clear result is never a guarantee a reader is safe. This page is general information, not legal advice.