(A) Bills for water service must be paid on or before the discount date shown thereon to obtain the net rate, otherwise, the gross rate shall apply. Failure to receive a bill will not relieve the customer from payment of obligation, nor extend the discount date.
(B) In the event bills are not paid by the discount date, the Department may at any time thereafter, upon five days written notice to customer, discontinue service and not again resume service until all bills are paid, and the Department shall not be liable for the damages on account of discontinuance of service any time after five days’ written notice, even though payment of such bills is made on the same day either before or after the service is actually discontinued.
(C) Should the date for the final payment of a bill at the net rate fall on a Sunday or a holiday, the business day next following the final date will be held as the last day to obtain the net rate. Net remittances received by mail after the discount date will be accepted by the Department if the incoming envelope bears the United States Post Office date stamp of the discount date or any date prior thereto.
(D) No customer shall be entitled to pay any bill at the net rate while delinquent in the payment of any obligation owed the Department.
(E) If a meter fails to register properly, or if the meter is removed to be tested and repaired, or if water is received other than through a meter, the Department reserves the right to render and collect an estimated ball based on the best information available.
(F) The Department may at its option make provision to allow a customer to pay for excessive water bills due to hidden leaks over an extended period of time not to exceed six months after the General Manager's approval. HIDDEN LEAKS are herein defined as those leaks which the customer could not reasonably have been expected to find until a bill for excessive consumption indicated the presence of such leaks. Leaks in interior plumbing, leaking or dripping faucets, leaking or dripping yard hydrants, leaks in commodes or other loss through failure of customer to provide cut-off, water lost due to frozen pipes and water used to keep pipes from freezing are specifically sited as examples of leaks which will not be termed as “hidden leaks” for the purpose of this section. In the case of excessive water bills, the sewer bill may be adjusted if the customer can prove to the Department's satisfaction, that the water from the hidden leak did not enter the sewer system for treatment.
(G) No adjustment in billing shall be made where premises are vacated without a notice to discontinue service having been given to the Department.
(1994 Code, § 18-217) (Ord. 421, passed 12-18-1986; Ord. 423, passed 3-5-1987; Ord. 784, passed 4-25-2016)