(A) Bills for service will be rendered monthly at intervals of approximately 30 days and will be based on the charges set forth in the rate schedules, this subchapter and any applicable contracts, and are payable at any office of TCED or to its authorized collection agencies.
(B) A bill is considered delinquent unless payment is received on or prior to the due date shown on the bill.
(C) A delinquent bill may be assessed a late payment charge, which will be assessed after 10:00 a.m. on the next working day after the due date of the second billing cycle. Penalty and disconnection notices are mailed on the same day. The amount of the late payment charge will be 1.5% of the current unpaid balance and shall be assessed each month. The current balance includes miscellaneous charges, but excludes any previous penalties. The late payment charge assessed on a customer who uses budget billing pursuant to § 51.30 shall not be calculated on the current budget billing or current budget balance, but shall be calculated on the actual current balance, including miscellaneous charges, but excluding any previous penalty amounts. Penalties are not assessed on the customer's final bill if the total amount is paid within a reasonable period.
(D) Failure to receive a bill shall not entitle the customer to pay the net bill after the designated due date has passed. Upon request, TCED will inform the customer of the approximate date on which the customer should receive the bill each month and, if the bill is lost, TCED will issue a duplicate.
(E) Initial or final bills for service supplied will be calculated on the basis of the applicable rate schedule.
(F) Following disconnection of service, the customer will be sent a final bill, which is due on or prior to the due date shown on the bill. Any difference between budget billing balances and the actual billing balances will be billed or refunded on the final bill.
(G) When TCED is unable to obtain the reading of a meter after reasonable effort, it may estimate the reading and render a bill so marked. If the customer's actual use is higher or lower than TCED's estimate, the difference will be reflected in the first bill after TCED is able to read the customer's meter. TCED will require access to the customer's premises on a periodic basis to confirm estimated usage. An unannounced meter reading will be made at least once each year. Failure to allow access to the meter, for the purpose of inspection or reading the meter, may be cause for discontinuance of service until the meter is moved to an accessible location. In some circumstances the customer will be offered the option of remote meter reading. Remote meter reading may be done by wired or wireless device or by the customer manually. The customer shall pay a fixed monthly fee for the service in accordance with the applicable rate schedule.
(H) In the event TCED's meter fails to register properly for any reason, TCED shall estimate the customer's energy use and/or maximum load during the period of failure based on factors such as the customer's normal load and energy usage during a like corresponding period.
(I) When TCED is required to reprocess a check rendered for payment of the customer's bill, a handling charge of shall be added to a subsequent billing in the amount specified in the rate schedule. A handling charge also will be assessed in accordance with the rate schedule when a customer has insufficient funds in his or her electronic billing account on the billing due date.
(Res. R990419d, passed - - ; Am. Ord. 835, passed 10-4-1999)