Water bill... furious!

PhillyGal34

So we bought our house in 5/09.  Our water bill was always about $25 a month but we figured that was right... this is our first house and it was only the two of us.  In February 2013 someone comes to the door saying they need to fix our meter.  they do but the bill doesn't change. we figured it was caught before it messed it up.  In December 2013 they come to the door when I am home alone with DS and I tell them that we will make an appointment that weekend because I don't feel comfortable. they come and replace our meter. We then get a letter saying our water will be shut off for refusing to allow them to fix the meter.  I finally get someone to fix it in their system and everything is fine. 

Today we get a letter in the mail stating that they are adding over $1800 to our bill next month for the estimated water we used because our meter apparently hasn't worked since 5/09.  I am so mad.  I am willing to pay what we owe, it isn't that. it is that they already added it to our bill which comes out directly from our savings with autopay and I cannot get it ended in time for it not to come out! so now they have our money. We can fight it but they have the money so what incentive do they have to reduce it? 

Any suggestions? has anyone dealt with disputing a bill? UGH happy friday to us! 

OnceInLoveWithAmy

I don't even know what to say to this , but I really hope you can figure this out.  $1,800?   Holy hell.  I would be like, "eff that.  you missed your chance."  

babe2331

I would fight that. If the meter was broken and you were unaware, that's on them. On the flip side, look at the bill and check out the usage grid for the past year. If there is no usage at all, they could argue you should have been checking the bill and a blank grid would indicate a problem. In Philly, the standard bill with no usage at all is around $25. With usage should be around $50.

PhillyGal34

There is no question we've been underpaying... which we now know. I never checked our water bill because I had no idea it was wrong and just never thought about it. It comes out automatically so I basically forgot about it.  I don't mind paying what we owe but them picking a number out of thin air and starting the period before we even owned the house is an issue to me.  I called and it is officially in dispute. We don't owe anything until a final determination is made and there will be an informal hearing.  who knows when we will get a resolution!