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The Department of Public Utilities (DPU) of the city of Toledo wants its customers to know their rights and responsibilities and whom to contact for assistance when they have questions or problems regarding DPU's utility services. While not a full interpretation of DPU's Rules & Regulations which appears in its entirety in TMC Part 9, Title 3, Appendix C, this recap should give customers some valuable guidance in this regard. Appendix C can be found at this internet address:
www.toledo.oh.gov/dpurules.
www.toledo.oh.gov/dpurules.
BE AN INFORMED CUSTOMER. KNOW YOUR RIGHTS AND RESPONSIBILITIES.
1. As a general rule, you have the right to establish water service if you meet all of these criteria: a.) You properly and fully complete the application process for utility services from DPU as shown in TMC App. C, Ch.101; b.) Neither you nor any member of your household is indebted to DPU for previously furnished utility services; c.) You provide DPU with the necessary inside access to the premises to be served; and d.) You agree to pay for all services received and to abide by all of the Director's Rules and Regulations which can be found in TMC Part 9, Title 3, Appendix C.
2. Customers with no history or good payment history with DPU have the right not to pay a security deposit to secure utility services. However, for customers who have experienced a termination of service due to lack of payment or any involvement with water theft, unauthorized use of utility services or tampering with DPU's equipment, a deposit will be charged. You will generally be deemed a customer with good credit history after you establish twelve (12) months of timely payments for services from the Department of Public Utilities. (See App. C, Sec. 101.02 D.)
3. If you are required to tender a security deposit in accordance with App. C, Sec. 101.02 D., you have the right to have your security deposit credited to your account when you discontinue services if you provide access for an inside meter reading and pay the final bill per App. C, Sec. 102.01 E. and App. C, Sec. 102.03. That notwithstanding, you have the right to have your security deposit credited to your account after one year if you have paid all bills in a timely manner, without any dunning activity having occurred and without any payments having been rejected by DPU for insufficient funds.
4. You have the right to pay your bill without incurring late-payment charges if DPU receives your payment in full by the due date shown on your utility bill per App. C, Sec. 104.01 A.
5. Although DPU bills most customers on a quarterly basis, per App. C, Sec. 104.01 A. customers have the right to make monthly payments in any amount if they prefer making smaller, more frequent payments for utility services just so long as the entire balance is paid in full by the due date on the periodic invoice.
6. You have the right to call in your meter reading to ensure you are paying for actual usage. Customers who receive an estimated bill always have the option to read their inside (actual) meter and provide the numbers to Customer Service who will reissue a corrected statement based upon this customer-furnished reading. That notwithstanding, per App. C, Sec. 104.04 all usage that passes through an inside meter must be paid for by the customer even if it is properly billed later by utilizing an actual DPU-obtained reading. (See App. C, Sec. 104.01 F & 104.03 D.)
7. You have the right to be given written notice from DPU in accordance with App. C, Ch. 103 before your water service can be disconnected for non-payment. Such notice may be mailed to you or delivered to the service address by field personnel and placed onto the front door of the structure.
8. Prior to a disconnection of your service, qualified customers have the right to apply for an Installment Payment Plan which would allow them to make installment payments to pay off a delinquency. Installment plan recipients will not receive monthly reminders and must timely remit the installment due each month before the due date shown on a schedule given to the customer when the installment plan is created. Failure to make any required installment payment when due and to make full payment on all normal monthly or quarterly bills will automatically cause the installment plan to default. Such default will cause all delinquencies to be immediately due and payable and your water service will be at risk for termination. Installment Payment Plans may be offered to qualified customers once every two years.
9. Per App. C, Sec. 102.01 C., 104.03 D. & 104.04, you are responsible to ensure that the numbers on the remote register (on the exterior of the building) match the numbers on the actual meter inside the building by checking these readings once or twice per year and reporting any irregularities to DPU Customer Service.
10. Per App. C, Ch. 104, you have the responsibility to pay for unbilled consumption which may occur when a remote register is not working properly and a corrected bill is issued to reflect actual water usage based upon the inside meter reading. You have the right to pay for heretofore unbilled consumption over a period of time equal to the length of time that the consumption went unbilled except in cases of Unauthorized Use of Utility Services, Tampering with DPU-owned equipment or Theft of Utility Services. Reasons generally affecting unbilled consumption are identified in App. C, Ch. 104.
11. You have the right to have DPU test your DPU-owned meter for accuracy if a malfunction is suspected per App. C, Sec. 104.05. You have the right to be furnished with the written results of the meter test.
12. You have the right to a credit on your account or refund on a final bill in cases of verified overpayment per App. C, Sec. 104.03 C.
13. You have the right to contact DPU's Customer Service Section during normal business hours at 419-245-1800. To report an emergency situation during or after normal business hours, please call the Water Emergency line (419) 242-5040.
14. Per App. C, Sec. 105.01, you have the right to have a Customer Service Representative explain to you aspects of your bill that you do not understand. This explanation may be limited to a reasonable period of time when other customers are waiting for access to DPU's representatives.
15. You have the right to appeal certain amounts billed for DPU's utility services to DPU's Customer Service Section per App. C, Ch. 105. Please refer to App. C, Ch. 104 for guidance regarding criteria which can be appealed and which criteria cannot be appealed. If you wish to appeal a decision of the Customer Service Section to DPU's Adjustment Committee, you have that right if you comply with all criteria in App. C, Ch. 105. A further appeal of any decision made pursuant to DPU's appeals process is addressed under Ohio Revised Code 2506 by the Lucas County Court of Common Pleas. DPU's appeal process (App. C, Ch. 105) may be accessed in the Department of Public Utilities' webpage, is displayed for public viewing in DPU's Utilities Administration offices and is available by request from DPU's Customer Service Section.
16. Property owners who wish to discontinue utility services must contact DPU to: a.) Schedule a final inside meter reading; b.) Provide safe inside access to field personnel for meter-reading and infrastructure inspection; and c.) Agree to timely pay final bill(s) when rendered. Actual termination of utility services by the account holder will only occur upon receipt by Customer Service of actual evidence that the account owner of record has ordered termination of utility services. Otherwise, charges will continue to accrue and bills will continue to be issued on the active account until it is properly terminated. Regardless, please note that storm water charges will continue to be billed for all accounts. (See App. C, Sec. 102.04)
17. Per App. C, Sec. 200.13, property owners are responsible for the condition of and maintenance to the entire length of the service pipe from the curb box into their structure, which also includes shut-off valves and the balance of all plumbing on private property.
18. While water meter equipment and remote registers are generally owned by DPU, per App. C, Sec. 201.06 property owners are responsible to ensure that meters do not freeze by providing adequate insulation if needed, and also by ensuring that they are not tampered with or damaged in any way.
19. You have the right to request information regarding water main breaks or boil advisories in your area per App. C, Ch. 107. Please call the city's Call City Hall number at (419) 936-2020 to do so.
20. If there are no water lines near your home, please contact Call City Hall at (419) 936-2020 to initiate the process of finding out if water lines can be extended to your premises pursuant to App. C, Ch. 205.
(Ord. 198-13. Passed 10-29-13.)
A. The Department provides its Utility Services to qualifying Owners of a Premises that hold valid contract(s) in good standing with the Department. No Owner or occupant of a Premises is entitled to receive Utility Services on demand at the Premises. For purposes of these Rules and Regulations, a Contract for Service may also be referred to as an agreement or an accepted Application for Service. The Contract for Service establishes a binding contractual agreement for Utility Services with the City of Toledo upon acceptance by DPU of all application requirements, including the Application for Service, as solely determined by DPU. The Department may intermittently in these Rules and Regulations and in practice refer interchangeably to the valid recipient of such Utility Services as a Consumer, Customer, contract holder, Account Holder, Owner or Business Partner. Tenants, lessees or similar non-contracting parties with the Department are neither Customers nor third-party beneficiaries of a Customer.
B. Acceptance and/or receipt of Utility Services shall constitute a knowing and voluntary agreement by the recipient to be bound by all applicable laws, rules and regulations, as may currently exist or as may be changed from time to time, contained herein, in the ORC, TMC or elsewhere. Unless clearly mandated by law, the City and/or Department shall not provide Utility Services for free or at a discount.
C. No oral modification to the agreement is permitted nor shall any such modification be binding on the City. No written modification to the agreement shall be permitted unless it is on a form proscribed by counsel for the City and signed by the Director.
D. In exchange for obtaining Utility Services from the City, a Customer agrees and acknowledges that the receipt of Utility Services at the Premises is for the Owner's occupation or the Owner's authorized representative's occupation and that for the purposes of ORC § 743.04 is the Owner who occupies the Premises served.
A. Prior to any access to Utility Services, including, without limitation, taps and tees to utility lines, the Owner must apply for said Utility Services. An application for Utility Service shall be completed by the Owner and shall be made in the manner specified by the Department from time to time. Some requirements include, without limitation: providing valid identification; providing proof of ownership and due authority; and satisfaction of any and all outstanding charges related to the Premises that is the subject of the application and/or other properties owned by or controlled by the applicant or other applicant accounts. The application must be signed by the Owner(s) or by the Owner's legally authorized agent. In the event that more than one Person or entity is the Owner, for example, a husband and wife, each Owner will be jointly and severally liable for the charges on the account or attributable to the Premises served. By submitting an application for Utility Services or accepting Utility Services, the applicant/recipient represents and warrants to the Department that the applicant is the lawful Owner of the Premises to receive Utility Services.
B. Information regarding an application or account is confidential, except where disclosure is required: under applicable public record laws; federal, state or local laws; for authorized law enforcement or postal authorities; for collection purposes; or when authorized by the Customer. The Department may verify ownership, Account Holder and due authority information using available online public information, such as AREIS and the Ohio Secretary of State.
C. An application may be denied for reasons determined by the Department, including, without limitation: if the Department is aware that the Premises has delinquent charges or unpaid fees for repairs or other work performed by the Department, or if the applicant and/or entities under applicant's control has delinquencies or owes fees for other properties, or if the applicant and/or entities under applicant's control has delinquencies or owes fees, etc., to the City for any matter.
D. Deposits.
1. The Department may require a Customer to furnish a deposit as a condition of application approval for any reason deemed to be in the best interests of the Department, including, without limitation: payment history, bankruptcy filings, foreclosure filings, or receiverships.
2. For the purposes of the TMC, including, without limitation, TMC § 933.04, the Department has determined that additional amounts are necessary to secure payments for Utility Services. Therefore, the amount of deposit required may vary, but will generally be equal to two (2) billing cycles' worth of charges (two [2] quarters for standard residential accounts or two [2] months for larger, commercial accounts). The Department may raise or lower the deposit at its discretion.
3. The Department may require an established Customer to furnish a deposit or an additional deposit, at its discretion, based on factors such as payment history and/or court filings.
4. The Department may apply a deposit as a credit to the account after a period of time as determined by the Department based on payment history and other relevant factors.
E. Trusts. When an application is made in the name of a title-holding trust or any similar Owner, the trustee shall provide the Department with a complete copy of the valid trust agreement applicable to the Premises that is the subject of the application. No Utility Service shall be provided to the Premises until a complete copy of the valid trust agreement is furnished and said trust agreement clearly authorizes the trustee or trustees to contract for and handle utility matters. In the event there is more than one trustee, only one need sign the contract for Utility Services unless the trust agreement indicates otherwise. If the trust expires, terminates or relinquishes its rights in the property to another, the new Owner must contract for Utility Service.
F. Condominium or Homeowner Associations. When an application is made in the name of a condominium ("condo") or homeowner association or any similar Owner, the condo or homeowner association shall provide the Department with a complete copy of the valid and recorded association documents applicable to the Premises that is the subject of the application. No Utility Service shall be provided to the Premises until a complete copy of the valid and recorded association documents are furnished and that said documents clearly authorize the person making application to contract for and handle utility matters. If the association documents expire or terminate, the new Owner must contract for Utility Service.
A. Applicants for Utility Services must sign a contract document that, if it does not spell out in full all of the laws, rules, regulations, policies and obligations that apply to Customers, it shall be deemed to incorporate same by reference. Notwithstanding the foregoing, the absence of a signature to a contract and/or the acceptance and/or receipt of Utility Services shall still constitute a knowing and voluntary agreement by the recipient to be bound by all applicable laws, rules and regulations contained herein, in the ORC, TMC, or elsewhere, as may currently exist or as may be changed from time to time, including, without limitation, the cost of Utility Services. For the entire duration of accepting and/or receiving Utility Services, the applicant represents and warrants to the City and Department that the applicant is the lawful Owner of the Premises to receive Utility Services.
B. The Department reserves the right to require existing Customers to sign or re-sign a contract for Services in the event the original contract cannot be located or as required by the Department.
C. Master Contract. At one time the Department handled some landlord-tenant accounts under a so-called Master Contract. This practice is no longer offered for new accounts. Existing Master Contracts may continue until the Department so notifies the Customer.
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