Water Leak Adjustment Policy

Water Bill Adjustment Policy – Revised effective December 1, 2021

Waterworks, at its discretion, may provide relief to customers who experience bills above their normal use due to water loss that occurs on the customers’ side of the meter. Such relief will be provided in the form of a credit on the bill and shall be limited to 50% of the water and sewer consumption charges above the 12-month average usage (average use) for the account. Service fees, fire protection fees, sewer maintenance fees, and charges other than for water/sewer consumption shall be excluded from the leak adjustment calculations. 

While a leak adjustment is under consideration, the customer shall pay consumption-related water and sewer charges equal to the average use on the account in addition to all other fees and charges on the bill/s under consideration, including, but not limited to service fees, fire protection fees, solid waste charges, etc. The remaining consumption-related water and sewer charges will be suspended until a determination is made on the pending leak adjustment request. After an adjustment is made, if any, the customer shall be required to pay the remaining account balance or enter into a payment arrangement. 

All requests for leak adjustments must be made using the online form within 60 days of the original due date of the high bill. 

For Single Family Residential accounts, consumption-related charges shall be capped at four (4) times the average use of water or water/sewer charges, as applicable. For all other account types, consumption-related charges shall be capped at seven (7) times the average use. (See examples at bottom of page)

Before receiving approval of a leak adjustment, the customer must locate the leak and complete repairs. The customer needs to provide documentation that the leak or system failure was repaired. A copy of a plumber’s invoice or a sales receipt for plumbing supplies used by the customer to complete the repairs shall be considered acceptable documentation.

If a customer is unable to identify a reason for a high bill but water usage has returned to normal levels, Waterworks may approve a one-time unexplained adjustment.

To allow Waterworks staff time to confirm that repairs have been completed and the customer’s usage has returned to normal levels, Waterworks shall respond to leak adjustment requests within 60 days of submission. 

Adjustments shall be considered for a maximum of three (3) consecutive billing periods (three monthly bills). For customers who do not have sufficient usage history or who have an irregular meter reading history, meter readings taken after the leak repair will be used to determine average use.

No leak adjustments will be granted where any of the following situations exist:

• A high bill adjustment of any type was issued within the past 12 months for the same service location.
• Usage above the customer's 12-month average consumption is due to seasonal usage such as watering of sod, gardening, filling or re-filling swimming pools or hot tubs, washing vehicles, etc.
• Water loss due to theft, vandalism or construction damage. Resolution of these instances is the responsibility of the account holder or property owner.
• The meter at said property has been accessed, tampered with, or turned on/off by anyone other than a Waterworks employee, and that action results in loss of water.
• Toilet leaks other than for single residential properties. (Only single family residential properties are eligible for toilet leak consideration).
• Customer has a history of high or erratic usage in the similar period of previous years.
• Five (5) high bill adjustments per 50 service locations were issued within the calendar year for the same customer.

Please Note: Completion of a request does not guarantee an adjustment will be made to your bill. All requests are evaluated using the criteria outlined in the Waterworks Water Bill Adjustment Policy.

Is a water leak adjustment right for me?
Due to limitations on the number of allowable adjustments per service location or customer, it is important to consider the size of the leak and possible adjustment amount before submitting an adjustment request.
Below are some general examples of water leak scenarios. Waterworks’ leak adjustment policy is to credit half of the “leak usage” (based on typical usage) from the impacted bill. The customer will still be billed for half of the “leak usage,” plus their typical usage.

The examples provided are based on 2021/2022 rates for water consumption only (examples do not include service fees, sewer fees, or other charges), and average usage will vary by customer.