Anybody have this issue?

[dennishoddy]

Complain to the water department about a possible faulty meter. When they again tell you electronics don't make mistakes, advise your lawyer doesn't either. Impress upon them that you have investigated all of the possible causes of the high water bills and have had zero water usage over X months and they had better meet you and a plumber at the meter within a week or be taken to court. Their inaction and failure to even offer to assist with fixing the problem is abhorrent to public service.

This reminds me of the SW Bell telephone company that took charges they could not collect from someone's bill and added them to other people's bill. Don't doubt me on this. I've seen it happen.

We are on record as of today with two certified plumbers not seeing any usage. I'm sure they city could say that we came from Ponca and found a faucet open. They sent us a graph of the usage. It spiked to max and stayed constant for a month for the $200 water bill. The next billing came in at $400 for last month. For some reason, they don't have that graph available yet. Good Lord, it's freeking electronics with a real time meter. You don't need a month to produce a graph that is a month old about water usage. The one we got was from July to August.
They can't produce one for us from August to September and it's now October?

 

[mr ed]

Why don't you take your water key and turn it off since its vacant?
Then check if its on when you come back in town.
This would mean no water gets thru meter and they are bogusly charging you.
Last May or so one of my renters had that problem. got a $2k water bill on one of those drive by meters.
City of Tulsa hooked something on it for a few days and determined it was a faulty meter. Replaced meter and all has been good since.

When I'm working on empty houses I take the water key and turn it off every night.
You'd be surprised how many A-Holes would stop by and turn on a faucet.
Then a neighbor would see the water flowing and turn it off.
End of the month you get a big surprise in the mail.

 

[SMS]

https://tulsaworld.com/news/local/t...cle_2051ef94-02f7-50cd-aa78-10cafea82bae.html

Can you compare readings on the bill with readings on the meter? (if the meter has a cumulative counter.)

 

[chuter]

If they're reading it thru a wireless connection, maybe they're reading the wrong meter....?

 

[Dale00]

Based on past experience I'd suspect a simple record keeping or software error by the water utility office. Perhaps there is a way to get a look at their detailed records. They'll probably say no but your request may jog them into finally looking it it themselves. It's a safe bet they have done nothing to investigate themselves as the source of the error so far. Or you could make you case clearly, concisely and unemotionally to some related city office (engineering?). The water billing people are used to dealing with dead-beats and do not believe complaining customers.

 

[emapples]

Mother in Law is in assisted living. Her home sits vacant in a nice neighborhood in Broken Arrow. Wife takes care of all her moms bills and business. Two months ago we got a water bill for $200. Wife called the billing dept and was told that all readings were electronic and electronics to not make a mistake. (I rolled eyes on that one after 46 years on the job building, designing and programming electronics)
We were at the home after coming back from Colorado for the summer. Spotted a toilet that was leaking so I turned the water off to that toilet thinking that was the issue.
When we left a couple days later I turned the water off to both toilets just as a safety thing.
Broken Arrow bills a month after the fact, so we just got a bill Thursday for $400 water usage for August thru September.
We called a plumber, made an appointment and drove to BA today.
Met with the plumbers and monitored the water meter which is electronic.
Zero water usage. The electronic meter monitors water flow down to 1/10 of a gallon in real time. Neither the plumbers nor ourselves saw any water usage. No wet spots in the yard, no runoff into the street. I inspected the outside hose bibs to see if there had been any hoses screwed onto them by neighbors stealing water with no evidence of any tampering. Spider webs in most of them.
From what we have determined, a city employee drives by each water meter along the curb and must "read" the meter with a hand held device as there is a small antenna on top of the meter cover.
Talked to two neighbors. Their water bills are normal.
It appears to me that the meter is not reading correctly.
Any Broken Arrow users have heard of this issue?

You can contact them and dispute it, could someone be stealing water ? Watering their yard or something

 

[dennishoddy]

Why don't you take your water key and turn it off since its vacant?
Then check if its on when you come back in town.
This would mean no water gets thru meter and they are bogusly charging you.
Last May or so one of my renters had that problem. got a $2k water bill on one of those drive by meters.
City of Tulsa hooked something on it for a few days and determined it was a faulty meter. Replaced meter and all has been good since.

When I'm working on empty houses I take the water key and turn it off every night.
You'd be surprised how many A-Holes would stop by and turn on a faucet.
Then a neighbor would see the water flowing and turn it off.
End of the month you get a big surprise in the mail.

That’s the current plan. Shut the water off at the meter when we leave, and see if we are billed again.

 

[dennishoddy]

You can contact them and dispute it, could someone be stealing water ? Watering their yard or something

It doesn’t appear so. Cobwebs in the outside hose bibs.

 

[emapples]

It doesn’t appear so. Cobwebs in the outside hose bibs.

Do you have it shut off at the meter? Shut it off and lock it if it still has locks

 

[emapples]

We are on record as of today with two certified plumbers not seeing any usage. I'm sure they city could say that we came from Ponca and found a faucet open. They sent us a graph of the usage. It spiked to max and stayed constant for a month for the $200 water bill. The next billing came in at $400 for last month. For some reason, they don't have that graph available yet. Good Lord, it's freeking electronics with a real time meter. You don't need a month to produce a graph that is a month old about water usage. The one we got was from July to August.
They can't produce one for us from August to September and it's now October?

Is she in BA or on Rural Water? I’m in BA with rural water