Dear Editor,
It is not very difficult for the Guyana Water Inc. to solve the problem of estimated bill readings not corres-ponding to actual water meter readings.
Let’s suppose that a water meter was attached to a domestic customer’s supply sometime in 2005 (the customer does not remember exactly when). For two plus years the customer continued to receive bills requiring him to pay the fixed rate of $8,900 per year with which he complied. No readings were ever taken by meter readers during the two plus years. All bills received before the attachment of the meter were paid. On February 13, 2008, he received a bill with an estimated reading at January 1, 2008 of 2,123 cubic metres that, after deducting previous payments, required him to pay $81,546. Immediately, the customer checked his meter and observed a reading of 362 cubic metres. He made a query at the nearest GWI office. On February 18, 2008, a meter reader came and took a reading of 364 cubic metres. The customer’s household therefore used on average 0.4 cubic metres of water daily, that’s equivalent to 1.8 barrels. The customer’s wife insists that the daily use is less than 1.8 barrels and that perhaps the meter is “running too fast.” Having great respect for measuring instruments, the customer replied that they will have to abide by the meter readings.
Thirty days later, on March 19, 2008 the customer checked the meter, which gave a reading of 376 cubic metres, thereby confirming that the average daily water consumption is 0.4 cubic metres. If this daily consumption average holds true, then it means that the water meter was attached about 905 days before February 13, 2008, and that would have been some time around August 22, 2005.
GWI charges the customer $60.90 per cubic metre of water. So from the time of attachment of the meter to February 18, 2008, when the first official meter reading was taken, the customer would have had to pay $22,168. Upon checking receipts for bills paid between May 30, 2006 and August 27, 2007, the customer found that he paid $22,444, which is $276 (= 4.5 cubic metres) in excess of the amount actually consumed up to February 18, 2008. If he maintained his average daily consumption, the customer was therefore covered for payments up to 11 days after February 18. So as at February 29, 2008, the customer owed GWI nothing.
On March 18, 2008, fearing unwarranted disconnection while GWI sorts itself out on his overestimated bill, the customer paid the fixed rate of $8,900. He is covered for 146 cubic metres of water, hopefully to last for 365 days until February 28, 2009. It is therefore a simple matter for GWI to correct wrongly estimated bills. Let me summarize. First, established the date when the meter was attached. There should be a record of that date in their system. Second, send a meter reader to take a recent reading. Third, determine how much the customer actually paid for the period from the date of the meter’s attachment to the date of the recent reading. Fourth, calculate the sum he should have paid based on the cost per cubic metre. The difference between the two figures will then tell whether he has underpaid, overpaid or paid exactly. This procedure requires no more mathematical and accounting knowledge higher than third form level.
Also, GWI personnel should be taught to read meters properly and to interpret meter readings correctly. The black numbers on the white background are whole numbers of cubic metres and the white numbers on the red background are decimals.
For example, a reading of 00362548 means 362.548 cubic metres and can be rounded off to 363 cubic metres. GWI needs to ensure that meters are read at least once per year and stop the dubious (and illegal?) practice of (over)estimating bills. If this cannot be done, then they should revert to the old GUYWA system of payments by categories: domestic, commercial, industrial etc. The honest customers who have been wrongfully disconnected must be reconnected without cost. Those customers who have tampered with their meters, bypassed their meters or have no meters, I commend them to the tender mercies of GWI.
Yours faithfully,
M. Xiu Quan-Balgobind-Hackett
