(a) Payment, Penalty and Disconnection. Payment for all rates and other applicable charges shall be made in accordance with the terms specified on the bill or bill insert. In the event any utility account becomes delinquent, penalties shall be assessed against all delinquent amounts and utility service shall be subject to disconnection in accordance with Section 947.08 of this chapter.
(b) Returned Check Charge. In addition to adding late payment charges as appropriate, the Village of Obetz, Ohio shall charge and collect a fee of one hundred dollars ($100.00) to cover the cost of handling a check which a customer tenders in payment of an account and which is returned by the bank because it cannot be paid as ordered.
(c) Customer Obligation. The customer is responsible for the customer's side of the point of delivery, generally considered to be the outlet side of the curb cock, for the service supplied or taken, as well as for the installation of gas equipment and appliances used in connection therewith. The customer shall not attach or use any appliance or equipment, which is unsafe or may result in the injection of air, water or other foreign matter into the gas lines so as to interfere, in any manner, with service to other customers.
(d) No Person Shall Sell to Another. No person shall supply or sell gas for use in any location other than that specified in the application for service as the location where service is to be received.
(e) Right to Shut Off Gas. The Village of Obetz, Ohio shall have the right to discontinue gas service to a customer or premises under the following conditions:
(1) For refusing access to any employee of the Village of Obetz, Ohio who has provided identification to the customer and stated the reasonable purpose for desiring such access;
(2) For failure to furnish or maintain the required security deposit according to the requirements of the Utilities Billing Office;
(3) For violation of any Rules and Regulations of the Village of Qbetz, Ohio;
(4) If any bill is not paid in total within thirty days after the payment date specified on the bill.
The Village of Obetz, Ohio shall have the right to discontinue service and the right to disconnect and remove from the premises of any customer the meter and any other property belonging to the Village of Obetz, Ohio for theft of gas, non-use of gas, nonpayment of bills for gas when bills are due, fraudulent representation or practice, tampering with the gas utility meter or piping in order to affect billing or metering, or whenever deemed necessary by the Village of Obetz, Ohio for safety reasons.
(f) Volume of Gas Delivered by Meter; Meter Tests. Volumes of gas delivered shall be determined on the basis of the meter registration and bills shall reflect the units of gas so registered. Any mistake in reading the meter registration shall not affect the liability for gas delivered as determined by a correct subsequent reading of the registration. When the meter is not read, the Village of Obetz, Ohio may estimate the volume of gas delivered and render a bill for such volume. A meter registering between three percent (3%) fast and three percent (3%) slow shall be deemed for all purposes to be registering correctly. The Village of Obetz, Ohio at its expense shall replace a meter registering incorrectly. Periodically, the Village of Obetz, Ohio may test meters, using standard industry practices, to determine accuracy of meter registration. If the customer requests a meter test and if the meter is found to be registering correctly, as defined above, the date of the test shall be stamped on the meter and the customer shall pay the applicable gas meter testing fees.
(g) Customer Service Line. The customer shall own and maintain the customer service line. The Village of Obetz, Ohio shall have the right to prescribe the size, location and termination points of the customer's service line and the meter connection. The Village of Obetz, Ohio shall have no obligation to install, maintain or repair such customer service line.
(h) Meter and Regulation Facilities. When changes in building or arrangements therein render the meter inaccessible or exposed to hazards, the Village of Obetz, Ohio shall, at the customer’s expense, arrange for the relocation at a site acceptable to the Village of Obetz, Ohio of the meter and regulation facilities, together with any portion of the customer’s service line necessary to accomplish such relocation. The customer shall not permit anyone who is not an authorized agent of the Village of Obetz, Ohio to connect or disconnect the Village of Obetz, Ohio’s meters, regulators or any portions of the service line.
(i) Internal Piping and Gas-Burning Equipment and Appliances. The customer shall own and maintain, in an operable and safe order, the internal piping from the outlet of the meter to all gas-burning equipment and appliances. The customer shall own and maintain all gas-burning equipment and appliances.
(j) Standards for Customer's Property. The customer's service line, house lines, fittings, valve connections and appliance venting shall be installed with materials and workmanship which meet all applicable safety standards and shall be subject to inspection or test by the Village of Obetz, Ohio. The Village of Obetz, Ohio shall have no obligation to establish service until after such inspection and test demonstrates compliance with such requirements with respect to the facilities in place at the time of the test. In the case of leakage, error, patent defect or other unsatisfactory or unsafe condition resulting in the disapproval of the line(s) by the Administrator, the necessary correction shall be made at the customer's expense and the facilities shall then be inspected and tested again by the Village of Obetz, Ohio. If the customer's service line, house lines, fittings, valve connections and gas-burning appliances or equipment on the customer's property are damaged, defective or in such condition as to constitute a hazard, the Village of Obetz, Ohio, upon notice to the customer of such defect or condition, may discontinue gas service until such defect or hazardous condition has been rectified by the customer in compliance with the reasonable requirements of the Village of Obetz, Ohio. The customer shall notify the Village of Obetz, Ohio promptly of additions, changes, alterations, remodeling or reconstruction affecting the gas movement on the customer's property. (Ord. 33-02. Passed 5-6-02.)