Water Bill Dispute with landlord (square foot, house, illegal, heat)

[rkleem]

Hello. I'm having a water bill dispute. We recently received a water bill for 1,000$. We've been told that we used 247,000 gallons of water. This was for only 20 days and we've just received the bill, so I'm sure we are on the hook for at least that much again, because the billing process is 25 days behind. This was our first month in the home so this may have been an issue before we even moved in.

This is an 800 square foot house without a washer and dryer or dishwasher. Obviously this bill is not indicative of how much water we use in the house.

When we moved in we noticed standing water in the backyard and asked and was told the home had some drainage issues, we accepted it. We've also had a ton of rain the last month, so didn't think too much of it. At this point we have to have had a huge underground water leak somewhere, but there is no surface indication, at least not to the extent of 247k gallons.

The landlord will not pay this bill, he said he will try to find someone to fix the pipe(if that is the issue). The bill is also in my name. What should my next step be? Legally, this can't be right. I wish someone at the water company would have called me and told me about the insane usage, but that never happened. What would you suggest? Thanks

[Okey Dokie]

Is it possible the meter was mis-read, either when you initiated service or on the regular reading date? That would be my first thought.

[North Beach Person]

That's 10000 gallons/day. If there was a leaking pipe you'd know it. The yard would be flooded and likely undercut.


Is it possible that the meter hadn't been read for a year or more?


Is it a visual read (dials) or an electronic/remote read?

[Rabrrita]

First look at the actual bill, What was the actual starting meter reading? What was the actual ending meter reading? What were the dates?

[rkleem]

We suspected a small leak when we moved in and informed the landlord as such. He said it was not the case. They are the old visual read type meters. It's also my understanding that no one had been living here, water shut off for about 5 months before we moved in on 12/1.

The bill reads, billing cycle 12/1-12/21. Actual read (526), estimated read previous (202 estimated), actual usage 324 or 247,000 gallons of water.

I'm thinking we've had a slow leak since well before we moved in and they estimated the previous reading and it was way low.

[Princess9483]

I would first call the utility company and have them pull the previous bill and then have them come back out to inspect since something is obviously wrong. If that doesn't work I would hire a plumber and have them find the leak and provide the landlord with both bills. I don't think nurseries go through that much water let alone a family.

[Bakeneko]

Yikes, def call the water company. Something is very wrong, maybe a slab leak? We rented a house years ago that was built on a concrete slab. And after six months or so - the water bills shot thru the roof. Turned out to be a slab leak - our landlord was very much like yours. He didn't want to admit that something might be wrong or require fixing with the house.


Make sure everything in the house is off , can you hear water running? Is the meter still moving ?

[Lacerta]

If no one had been living in the house, was the heat also off? If you are in a cold climate, had the house been winterized? If not, you could easily have broken pipes.


Also, why was the prior bill estimated? I would definitely call the water company immediately. Maybe part of that is a balance forward from before the meter was shut off. Or maybe it was last read 5 months ago and someone manually turned the water back on and has been using it illegally (some areas have locked meters, but not all).


There is no way your family used this much water unless you had an empty swimming pool you had to fill several times over the course of the month.

[tamlym]

Definitely call the water company first, tell them there seems to be a leak because there is no way you can use that much water, especially since you've only been there one month (and I would assume you started service about that time)

Ask them to check to see if it's a leak on their side or yours. If it's on their side of the meter, they will fix it. If it's on your side, it's on the owner's dime. He needs to fix it asap.

Have had a couple of irregular high bills due to busted pipes and a leaking toilet (on two properties and with two different water companies). Both times both companies were willing to adjust the bill once I showed them a repair invoice. The adjustment was based on past usage and history, so not sure how this would work in your case since you just moved in not too long ago...GL

[BostonMike7]

That's a swimming pool of water a day. I'd think you notice that around the property.

Can you find the meter on the property?

I'd call the utility company and have them send someone out. There is clearly an issue here...unless someone is filling neighborhood pools up with a hose from your house.