Current through March 20, 2024
Authority: IC 8-1-1-3; IC 8-1-2-4
Affected: IC 8-1-2-4; IC 8-1-2-113
Sec. 16.
(a) For
disconnection of service upon the customer's request, the customer shall:
(1) notify the utility at least three (3)
days in advance of the day disconnection is desired; and
(2) remain responsible for all service used
and the billings therefor until service is disconnected pursuant to such
notice. Upon request by a customer of a utility to disconnect service, the
utility shall disconnect the service within three (3) working days of the
requested disconnection date. The customer shall not be liable for any service
rendered to the address or location after the expiration of these three (3)
days.
(b) A utility may
disconnect service without request by the customer and without prior notice
only:
(1) if a condition dangerous or
hazardous to life, physical safety, or property exists;
(2) upon order by any court, the commission,
or other duly authorized public authority;
(3) if fraudulent or unauthorized use of
water is detected and the utility has reasonable ground to believe the affected
customer is responsible for the use; or
(4) if the utility's regulating or measuring
equipment has been tampered with and the utility has reasonable grounds to
believe that the affected customer is responsible for the tampering. In all
other instances, a utility, upon providing the customer with proper notice as
defined in subsection (e), may disconnect service subject to the other
provisions of this rule.
(c) Except as otherwise provided in
subsections (a) and (b), a utility shall postpone the disconnection of service
for ten (10) days if, prior to the disconnect date specified in the disconnect
notice, the customer provides the utility with a medical statement from a
licensed physician or public health official that states that disconnection
would be a serious and immediate threat to the health or safety of a designated
person in the household of the customer. The postponement of disconnection
shall be continued for one (1) additional ten (10) day period upon the
provision of an additional such medical statement. A utility may not disconnect
service to the customer:
(1) upon his or her
failure to pay for:
(A) merchandise or
appliances purchased from the utility furnishing the water;
(B) the service rendered at a different
metering point, residence, or location if the bill has remained unpaid for less
than forty-five (45) days;
(C)
services to a previous occupant of the premises to be served, unless the
utility has good reason to believe the customer is attempting to defraud the
utility by using another name; or
(D) a different form or class of utility
service;
(2) if the
customer shows cause for his or her inability to pay the full amount due
(financial hardship shall constitute cause) and the customer:
(A) pays a reasonable portion (not to exceed
ten dollars ($10) or one-tenth (1/10) of the bill, whichever is less, unless
the customer agrees to a greater portion) of the bill;
(B) agrees to pay the remainder of the
outstanding bill within three (3) months;
(C) agrees to pay all undisputed future bills
for service as they become due; and
(D) has not breached any similar agreement
with the utility made pursuant to this rule within the past twelve (12) months;
provided, however, that the utility may add to the outstanding bill a late
payment charge not to exceed the amount set under section 13(b) of this rule,
and provided further, that the terms of the agreement shall be put in writing
by the utility and signed by the customer and by a representative of the
utility and only one (1) late payment charge may be made to the customer under
this section; or
(3) if
a customer is unable to pay a bill that is unusually large due to prior
incorrect reading of the meter, incorrect application of the rate schedule,
incorrect connection or functioning of the meter, prior estimates where no
actual reading was taken for over two (2) months, stopped or slow meter, or any
human or mechanical error of the utility, and the customer:
(A) pays a reasonable portion of the bill,
not to exceed an amount equal to the customer's average bill for the twelve
(12) bills immediately preceding the bill in question;
(B) agrees to pay the remainder at a
reasonable rate; and
(C) agrees to
pay all undisputed future bills for service as they become due; provided,
however, that the utility may not add to the outstanding bill any late fee, and
provided further, that the terms of agreement shall be put in writing by the
utility and signed by the customer and a representative of the utility. If a
customer proceeds with a review under
170
IAC 16-1-5, the utility may disconnect only as
provided in
170
IAC 16-1-7.
(d) No utility may disconnect service unless
it is done between the hours of 8:00 a.m. and 3:00 p.m., prevailing local time.
Disconnections under subsections (a) and (b) are not subject to this
limitation. A utility may not disconnect service for nonpayment on any day on
which the utility office is closed to the public or after noon of the day
immediately preceding any day on which the utility office is not open to the
public.
(e) Notice is required
prior to involuntary disconnection as follows:
(1) Except as otherwise provided in this
article, service to any residential customer shall not be disconnected for a
violation of any rule or regulation of a utility or for the nonpayment of a
bill, except after seven (7) days prior written notice to the customer by
either:
(A) mailing the notice to the
residential customer at the address shown on the records of the utility;
or
(B) personal delivery of the
notice to the residential customer or a responsible member of his or her
household at the address shown on the records of the utility. No disconnect
notice for nonpayment may be rendered prior to the date on which the account
becomes delinquent.
(2)
The notice must be in language that is clear, concise, and easily
understandable to a layperson and shall state the following in separately
numbered large typed or printed paragraphs:
(A) The date of proposed
disconnection.
(B) The specific
actual basis and reason for the proposed disconnection.
(C) The telephone number of the utility
office at which the customer may call during regular business hours in order to
question the proposed disconnection or seek information concerning his or her
rights.
(D) A reference to the
pamphlet or the copy of the rules furnished to the customer under section 18 of
this rule for information as to the customer's rights.
(f) Immediately preceding the
actual disconnection of service, the employee of the utility designated to
perform such function shall:
(1) make a
reasonable attempt to identify himself or herself to the customer or any other
responsible person then upon the premises;
(2) announce the purpose of his or her
presence;
(3) make a record thereof
to be maintained for at least thirty (30) days;
(4) have in his or her possession information
sufficient to enable him or her to inform the customer or other responsible
person of the reason for disconnection, including the amount of any delinquent
bill of the customer; and
(5)
request from the customer any available verification that the outstanding bill
has been satisfied or is currently in dispute pursuant to review under
170
IAC 16-1-5.
Upon the presentation of such credible evidence, service
shall not be disconnected. The employee shall not be required to accept payment
from the customer or other responsible person in order to prevent the service
from being disconnected. The utility shall notify its customers under section
18 of this rule of its policy with regard to the acceptance or nonacceptance of
payment by such employee and shall uniformly follow such policy without
discrimination. When the employee has disconnected the service, he or she shall
give to a responsible person at the customer's premises or, if no one is at
home, shall leave at a conspicuous place on the premises a notice stating that
service has been disconnected and stating the address and telephone number of
the utility where the customer may arrange to have service reconnected.
(g) A utility may
charge a reasonable reconnection charge, not to exceed the charge approved by
the commission in the utility's filed tariffs. A utility shall inform its
customers of the reconnection fee under section 18 of this rule. If the utility
disconnects service in violation of this rule, the service shall immediately be
restored at no charge to the customer. The utility must reconnect the service
to the customer as soon as reasonably possible but at least within one (1)
working day after it is requested to do so; provided, however, that the utility
shall not be required to reconnect the service until:
(1) the conditions, circumstances, or
practices that caused the disconnection have been corrected;
(2) payment of all delinquent charges owed
the utility by the customer and any deposit authorized by this rule has been
made; and
(3) a responsible person
is present in the premises to see that all water outlets are closed to prevent
damage from escaping water.