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This booklet provides existing and
new residential customers with a summary of their rights and
responsibilities, as required by Chapter 810 of the Maine Public
Utilities Commission’s (MPUC) rules and regulations. The purpose of
this chapter is to ensure
• safe and adequate provision of residential
utility service;
• service is not disconnected, or refused,
unreasonably, and;
• the utility’s right to collect proper bills
for residential utility service.
Every privilege that is granted and every duty
that is required by Chapter 810 imposes an obligation on utilities,
applicants, and customers to accept these privileges and perform
these duties with good faith, honesty and fairness.
Throughout this booklet, the terms, "we" and "us"
refer to the Portland Water District. The term "you" refers to the
applicant or customer.
Discrimination
When you apply for service, we pledge to treat you
fairly. As part of the process, you may be required to complete an
application form or answer some questions before we accept you as a
customer.
Without regard to race, sex, age, national origin,
or marital status, we will either agree to provide the service you
ask for or deny it within one (1) work day, in which case, we will
send you the reason(s) in writing for denial and inform you of your
options.
Cost of Service
When you apply for service, we will tell you about the basic
minimum service costs and about one-time costs, such as installation
and activation fees. Our rates are approved by the Maine Public
Utilities Commission. We cannot change these rates without the
approval of the MPUC. You have the right to review and comment on
our proposed rates before the MPUC approves or disapproves any
changes.
Old Unpaid Bills
When you apply for service, we will determine if you have had
service with us before. If you have an unpaid bill that is less than
six (6) years old, we will ask you to pay it or make a payment
arrangement. We cannot require you to pay anyone else’s bills - only
those bills in your name or bills which a court has ruled as your
responsibility. If you dispute the old bill, or you are unable to
settle on a reasonable payment plan, please refer to the "Complaint"
section of this booklet.
We can require a security deposit for water service if there is
proof that you may be a credit risk, that is, you may not pay your
future bills. In most cases, proof that you will be a credit risk is
shown if you have an unpaid bill when you apply for service, or you
have been disconnected for nonpayment, unauthorized use, or theft of
services. These are not all the situations in which we can require a
deposit. You have the right to show us evidence that you can, and
will, pay your future bills to avoid a deposit request.
When We Require A Deposit
• We must inform you in writing.
• We must tell you what you can do to begin or
continue service.
• You may ask for proof that you are a credit
risk.
• We will tell you what to do if you disagree
with the request or amount.
• We will pay interest on your deposit.
• We will give you a choice between a cash
deposit or allowing another person to "guarantee" your bills up to
the deposit amount. The guarantor must be a customer in good
standing with us.
Deposit Amount: Payment Options
We can require a deposit that is equal to your
anticipated bills for two months.
You can usually choose to pay the
deposit in full or in three payments with half the total due
immediately, 25% in thirty (30) days and 25% in sixty (60) days.
However, we may demand full payment of a deposit if you are already
using a payment plan to pay off an unpaid bill.
Return Of Deposit
We will return your deposit, with interest, if you
pay your bills on time for 12 consecutive months.
Estimated Bills
We will send you a bill each month – based on your actual water
usage. However, there may be times when we will need to send you an
estimated bill. We will not send you two estimated bills in a row,
except during extreme weather conditions, emergencies, work
stoppages or similar circumstances that would prevent our employees
from reading your meter, or if you receive bills on a seasonal
basis. If your meter is not accessible, we will leave a postcard so
you can record the actual meter reading. If you send us this
postcard promptly, we will then issue a bill based on your actual
usage report.
Make-Up Bills
If we have to issue a make-up bill for past service that you were
not billed for, we will offer you a payment arrangement. If the
reason for the make-up bill is our error (e.g., equipment failure or
billing error), you will be billed for a maximum of one (1) year of
past service, even if the billing error was for a longer period of
time. If the make-up bill is due to fraud or unauthorized use, you
may be billed up to a maximum of six (6) years for past service.
Previous Bills
A record of your usage for the prior thirteen (13) months is
published on your bill or you may obtain it by contacting our
customer service center.
Third-Party Notices
Let us know if you want another person to receive a copy of
disconnection notices. We will send a copy to the person you
designate, but you are still responsible for payment. This service
may be especially important for our elderly, disabled, and
handicapped customers.
Accuracy Of Meters
The Maine Public Utilities Commission establishes the schedule of
required meter tests and the accuracy standards that a meter must
meet. If you want your meter tested for accuracy, we will do so at
no extra cost to you. If you would like your meter tested more than
once every 18 months, we will charge you a reasonable fee for this
test. You have the right to be present when the meter is tested, but
an appointment is required.
You can check the accuracy of your
bill and monitor your own usage by reading the meter yourself.
Information on how to read your meter can be found on our web site
or by contacting us.
Below are a few of the more common fees, above and beyond normal
water and sewer usage, that you might incur.
New Customer Activation Fee.
You’ll be charged a
$6.25 fee if you request a change to an existing account causing an
additional customer account record to be created.
New Meter Or Service Fee.
If you request a new service, you’ll be assessed a $45 fee to review
your application in addition to inspection and meter fees.
Returned Check Policy:
The greater of $5.00
or bank charges, maximum of $15.00 per account.
Late Payment Fee:
Changes annually (18%
A.P.R. maximum).
Close Metered Accounts.
Upon closing an account,
you’ll pay for the cost of the removal of the meter if no one else
is taking responsibility for billing and if the District is not
provided access to retrieve the meter or the meter can not be
located on the premises.
Collection Fee:
If we visit your
property to disconnect service for nonpayment, and in lieu of actual
disconnection you pay or make a payment arrangement for the entire
balance due, you will be charged a collection fee of $19.00.
Reconnection Charges:
During Business Hours: $39. Other Hours: $35 per hour with a minimum
charge of $90.
General
You may pay your bill by mail, online, or in
person at our office at 225 Douglass Street. If you mail your
payment to us, your bill is considered paid on the day we receive
it. If you pay at our office, your bill is considered paid on the
day you make the payment. If you make a partial payment, we will
apply it to the oldest, undisputed balance due.
We accept payment by cash, check, or money order.
When a check is dishonored, a charge may be assessed to the accounts
of any customer whose check is returned by the bank for insufficient
funds. We will, upon request, furnish you with proof of bank charges
above $5.00.
If you pay after the "due date" stated on the
bill, we may charge a late fee.
Financial Assistance
PWD offers qualified residents discounted Lifeline
rates and funds a low-income plumbing assistance program.
Lifeline rates follow Home Energy Assistance
Program (HEAP) guidelines. Homeowners with an annual household
income that is 80% of the Area Median Income may qualify for
financial assistance to repair plumbing. Portland Regional
Opportunity Program (PROP) administers the programs on behalf of
PWD. Please contact PROP
for more details.
Payment Arrangements
We will continue service, even if you can’t pay
your account in full, as long as you pay a reasonable portion of
your bill, and you agree to pay the rest in affordable weekly or
monthly payments. You must also agree to pay all future bills within
30 days of the postmark date, until the overdue amount is paid in
full.
We will consider the following issues when making
a payment arrangement:
• Your ability to pay.
• Your previous payment history.
• The reason the bill cannot be paid.
• How long the bill has remained unpaid.
• Whether disconnection would pose a danger to
your health.
We will send you a written copy of the payment
arrangement.
If you do not make payments according to a written
payment arrangement, we may send you a disconnection notice that
gives you three (3) business days to pay the full overdue amount. We
are not required to make a second arrangement, but we will attempt
to respond to your particular situation.
You do not have to agree to a payment arrangement,
or any other proposed settlement of a dispute, if doing so means
giving up other rights listed in this booklet or in Chapter 810 of
the Public Utilities Commission Rules and Regulations.
We may need to interrupt your service, on
occasion, to repair or maintain our equipment. When possible, we
will let you know why and how long you can expect to be without
service.
If we plan to interrupt service to more than ten
customers or for more than 3 hours, we must give you at least 24
hours notice. We will give you more notice whenever possible. If
your service must be interrupted without notice for more than 3
hours due to storms or other emergencies, we will immediately
attempt to notify you and inform you how long you are likely to be
without service.
Please promptly notify us if being without service
would pose a danger to any member of your household. We will put you
on a priority list to restore service as soon as possible.
We are not responsible for damage caused by
discolored water, unsatisfactory water service resulting from the
cleaning of pipes or storage facilities, or from the opening or
closing of any valves or hydrants, unless the damage was caused by
our negligence. We are also not responsible for meeting unusually
high water quality standards for specialized or industrial
customers.
You may apply for a pro rated reduction on your
minimum bill if your service is interrupted for more than 48 hours
through no fault of your own.
Please contact us for information about
interrupted or unsatisfactory service.
We don’t want to disconnect your service. We will
work with you to resolve any problems. However, if a customer
refuses to cooperate, we have the right to start disconnection
procedures if the customer
• fails to pay or make a payment arrangement for
an overdue water bill that is greater than $l00.00 or a combined
sewer and water bill greater than $200.00 and is more than 50 days
old, or;
• doesn’t comply with a written payment
arrangement, or;
• fails to pay a deposit in full, make an
installment arrangement, provide someone to guarantee payment, or;
• uses service without having applied for it,
or;
• refuses to let us on the property to install
or read a meter, or to inspect or repair our property, or;
• tampers with the meter, or obtains service
without payment, or;
• misrepresents who he/she is in order to
receive service, or;
• fails to comply with a decision of the Maine
Public Utilities Commission, or its Consumer Assistance Division,
or;
• commits a cross connection violation (a
potential contamination of the water supply system), or;
• fails to repair a leak on private property.
We Do Not Disconnect For
• Non-basic service charges such as merchandise
or services not regulated by the Maine Public Utilities
Commission.
• An old bill that was not properly transferred
to your account when you applied for service.
• Estimated usage. But we can disconnect if you
refuse to allow us to read a meter, or you have refused to provide
an actual reading.
We will not disconnect service if
you or a doctor notify us of a medical emergency.
Tenants
If you are a tenant and your landlord asks us to disconnect, or
if your landlord does not pay the bill, you have the option of
putting the service in your own name. You do not have to pay the
landlord’s unpaid bill.
Disconnection Notice
In most cases, we will notify you in writing at least 14 days
before a stated disconnection date. But we are only required to give
you three (3) working days notice if you have broken a payment plan,
failed to pay a deposit, paid with a "bad" check, or received
service without applying to become a customer. We can disconnect
without notice only if there is unauthorized use (meter tampering)
or a dangerous condition.
A disconnection notice is valid for ten (10) business days after
the disconnection date stated. The ten (10) days may be extended if
we are denied access to the meter or other device to turn off
service.
The disconnection notice will tell you what to do to avoid
disconnection and how you can dispute your bill or the disconnection
itself.
We will not disconnect service for non-payment on a Friday, a
weekend, a legal holiday, the day before a holiday or on any day our
office is not open for business.
When You Want Service Disconnected
We may require seven days notice to disconnect your service. We
can bill you for service during this period.
We will reconnect service promptly - during
business hours on the day requested or at the latest, during the next
business day - provided you have paid your overdue bill or have agreed to a
payment arrangement. We may also charge you a deposit. When payment of both
a deposit and the unpaid bill are required, you can pay the smaller amount
in full and make a payment arrangement on the larger amount.
We will not disconnect service, or refuse to
reconnect it, when you or someone in your house is seriously ill
provided a registered physician confirms that an emergency exists
that would be seriously aggravated by lack of service. If you cannot
get a doctor to call right away, you may let us know yourself. We
will wait three (3) work days for the doctor to call or write us. We
can require written certification from the doctor, including
specific reasons why service is necessary and how long the emergency
will last. Disconnection can be postponed due to a medical emergency
for up to 30 days and can be renewed up to 90 days.
A medical emergency does not cancel the bill; we
will require you to make a reasonable payment arrangement.
If you refuse to enter into a payment arrangement
as a condition of renewal of the certification or fail to comply
with a payment arrangement, we can disconnect service only by
obtaining an exemption from the MPUC.
If you have a question or complaint, please call
us first. We have employees available during business hours to
answer your questions, make payment arrangements, investigate your
complaints, and resolve disputes.
PWD will consider claims for damages, except when
the damage is beyond our control. Claim forms can be obtained on our
web site or by calling our Customer Service Department at (207)
761-8310.
If you disagree with our decision, you have the
right to appeal to the Consumer Assistance Division (CAD) of the
Maine Public Utilities Commission, State House Station 18, Augusta,
Maine 04333. You can call the CAD at (207) 287-3831 or toll-free at
1-800-452-4699. Before you call or write the Commission, you must
give us a chance to respond to your complaint.
We cannot disconnect you for a disputed amount,
but you do have to pay the portion of the bill that is not in
dispute. If you contact us before the service is disconnected, and
we cannot agree on a payment arrangement or other requirement to
stop disconnection, you can appeal to the MPUC as described above.
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