Brockton resident's $100,000 water bill settled

[Hum]

It took two years, but Ayanna YanceyCato says the city finally got her water bill correct.

It was off by about $94,000.

YanceyCato has been at the center of the city?s water billing fiasco, after she received a total of $100,000 in water bills in the summer of 2009.

The bills came after a 12-year period during which the city did not take an actual reading of her home?s water meter.

A year after her bills for $100,000 came, the city reduced the total to $17,000.

But on Tuesday morning, she settled her billing dispute with the city for far less, reaching an agreement with City Solicitor Phillip Nessralla shortly before her case was to be heard in front of the state?s Appellate Tax Board.

YanceyCato agreed to settle for $3,400 ? 20 percent of the city?s amount ? payable in 45 days. Once the total is paid, the $17,500 lien on her property tax bill will be removed.

The agreement came after YanceyCato?s 9:30 a.m. case was delayed to allow time for a final round of talks between the parties.

The tax board hearing room was turned into a waiting room as a parade of conversations between Nessralla, YanceyCato, Department of Public Works Commissioner Michael Thoreson and Ward 6 City Councilor Michelle DuBois, who traveled with YanceyCato to the hearing, took place in the hall outside.

Nessralla said the $3,400 represented only ?a number that both parties believe they can live with? and not a new calculation of her bill.

Thoreson declined to comment on the settlement.

YanceyCato proposed the $3,400 figure because she thought it?s what she should have been charged for the two years? worth of water she used before her new meter was installed. She used the first year of readings on her new meter to calculate the total.

?That?s what I asked for back in 2009,? she said. ?This should have been resolved in 2009. ... If you?re willing to do this (deal), why didn?t you do this a year ago??

Nessralla said that YanceyCato?s case came to his department recently, and that negotiations basically start anew when they get to the Law Department.

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[vladmhome]

So let me guess...she messed around with the water meter and expected to not get caught? idiot.

[Hum]

^ I doubt that -- no way she used $100,000 worth. :laugh:

[ILikeTobacco]

^ I doubt that -- no way she used $100,000 worth. :laugh:

Maybe she ran a slip and slide business in her backyard! :D

[shakey]

So let me guess...she messed around with the water meter and expected to not get caught? idiot.

Umm, no. Water and Electric Companies misread meters all the time, either through human error or mechanical. I had an issue where a water meter on another business property of mine was being incorrectly read for about 6 months, because apparently the meter stopped working, and the guy reading it never wondered why, after a month or so, the tachometer never moved. They just let it stay that way for over half a year, then all of a sudden, they billed us for the entire misread, and even gave us late charges because it through off our normal monthly payments we had already accounted for, as you still get charged a minimum amount each month.

Since they failed to maintain and use the meter properly, for such a long time, she should have just as much time to pay it off. I dislike that they basically don't do their job right, then put all the burden onto the customer, and expect everything to be resolved very quickly, when they failed to fix it promptly.

[Hum]

^ Towns are greedy, is my guess.

[Charisma Veteran]

So let me guess...she messed around with the water meter and expected to not get caught? idiot.

No, they definitely mess up from time to time. I remember there being something wrong with the power meter at my old apartment years ago--it was a very small place and I didn't run the A/C or heating much, so the normal bill was anywhere between $20 and $40 depending on the time of year. It shot up to over $300 one month and it took a lot of money and more months of fighting before they figured out the problem. As if I could even possibly use that much electricity in that place. The meter had a fault and they replaced it, but then (more importantly, and probably the cause of the meter fault in the first place) there was some line that had somehow gotten chewed through by a rodent and was constantly grounding itself? I'm not sure how that didn't interfere with the power coming into my house, but anyway, it did eventually get fixed and some of my money refunded. I still think they owed me about $200 more, but... Oh well.

[BajiRav]

Umm, no. Water and Electric Companies misread meters all the time, either through human error or mechanical. I had an issue where a water meter on another business property of mine was being incorrectly read for about 6 months, because apparently the meter stopped working, and the guy reading it never wondered why, after a month or so, the tachometer never moved. They just let it stay that way for over half a year, then all of a sudden, they billed us for the entire misread, and even gave us late charges because it through off our normal monthly payments we had already accounted for, as you still get charged a minimum amount each month. Since they failed to maintain and use the meter properly, for such a long time, she should have just as much time to pay it off. I dislike that they basically don't do their job right, then put all the burden onto the customer, and expect everything to be resolved very quickly, when they failed to fix it promptly.

I've had my power bill for $350+ from a monthly average of ~$80 in one month. I had to call them to re-read my meter. :pinch:

[cybertimber2008]

Yea I've ran into a similar issue where I live. The water meter is contained in a box that is level with the ground and after heavy rains, the box filled with water and clay mud. They didn't read it for months until I noticed that the amount used was idential every month. Called them and they came and "scraped the mud off of the meter glass".

Yep... that's all it took.