Utility Fights Back Against Service Theft

Service theft is a pesky — and expensive — problem for municipalities and water companies, but some water providers are finding ways to fight back.

El Dorado Water Utilities (EWU) has been struggling with this problem for a while. It continues to track the issue closely.

“Cathy Wooten, an EWU customer service team member, explained that theft occurs when someone moves into a house with a vacant account and tampers with the meter, which is padlocked, to activate water service without properly opening a customer account with EWU,” El Dorado News recently reported.

Tamperers sometimes break the padlock. One customer managed to break through three different locks.

But the utility is finding ways to minimize service theft. Data analytics enables the utility to investigate if an account is stealing water. Officials have also crafted policies to penalize people who cut padlocks.

“When someone cuts a padlock on a meter, Wooten said the utilities place another lock on the meter and charges the offender a $300 tampering fee. A fee of $400 is charged in a second instance and $500 for a third, After a third occurrence, the meter is pulled and a plug is used to block access to water service, Wooten said. Once a tampering fee is levied, the offender has to set up an account as a new customer,” the report said, citing Wooten.

The utility is vigilant about the various forms of service theft.

“EWU employees and Lorraine Murtha, EWU consulting engineer, said people also find creative ways to jump meters, including using water hoses, bicycle inner tubes, etc.,” the report said.

Tapping fire hydrants are another way some people attempt service theft. The Jersey Journal reported this week that In Bayonne, NJ, “a contractor doing construction work on the Bayonne Bridge admitted to drawing water from a city fire hydrant without using a meter to measure how much it was taking.” The contractor called it an oversight.

Service theft raises costs for all ratepayers, according to utility officials. “Illegally obtained utilities increase rates for everyone, and unauthorized use of utilities or tampering with utility equipment is a crime and punishable by fines and/or prison time. Help prevent injuries and increased rates due to utility thieves by reporting suspicious behavior,” the Orlando Utilities Commission says on its website.