Utilities Gouging?

[poobert]

My electric and water bills have increased rather dramatically over the past few months. In particular, my DWSD bill went up around 50%. Electric is pretty bad as well. I've spent less and less time at home as a result of military obligation and I also don't own a television or water my lawn or any silly business like that so it would be impossible for my actual usage to increase. I think the local evil monopolies/trusts [[DWSD and DTE) are scamming me and I would like to destroy them. Any input in your experiences or how to go about seeking retribution from them or otherwise dealing them punishment is appreciated.

[ABetterDetroit]

Yes, very badly, they turned one of the very best fresh water supply's on planet earth right here in north America and well.... Instead of making it a fantastic regional asset they started gouging the shit out of you. They wanted it all, high paid union jobs with bullshit classifications and of course a special interest consideration to NOT TAX THE INCOME FROM THEIR PESIONS because it's only bad when corporations do it, not when everyone else does.

[Gpwrangler]

I assume you've checked your usage numbers. DTE has a usage graph available that will chart KWH month by month. The cost per KWH has not really changed.

If you're away a lot and your neighbors lawn is green and yours is dead, this could be a clue to high water usage.

[Hermod]

I assume you've checked your usage numbers. DTE has a usage graph available that will chart KWH month by month. The cost per KWH has not really changed.

If you're away a lot and your neighbors lawn is green and yours is dead, this could be a clue to high water usage.

Even worse, you could have a leak in the water line between the meter and your house [[very expensive). As noted, check your usage rates.

[Scottathew]

I assume you've checked your usage numbers. DTE has a usage graph available that will chart KWH month by month. The cost per KWH has not really changed.

If you're away a lot and your neighbors lawn is green and yours is dead, this could be a clue to high water usage.

If you have a smart meter you can get a phone app and see your usage hour-by-hour. I installed the DTE Energy Insight app and have had a lot of fun analyzing my energy usage.

[Zacha341]

It's usually gradual but an aging refrigerator will eventually spike up your electric bill. I noted a difference when I replaced my older fridge a few years ago.

[corktownyuppie]

My electric and water bills have increased rather dramatically over the past few months. In particular, my DWSD bill went up around 50%. Electric is pretty bad as well. I've spent less and less time at home as a result of military obligation and I also don't own a television or water my lawn or any silly business like that so it would be impossible for my actual usage to increase. I think the local evil monopolies/trusts [[DWSD and DTE) are scamming me and I would like to destroy them.

Let's suspend the evil conspiracy talk until you rule out usage issues. I know that rates have not gone up by 50% in the last few months, so the key is finding out where the usage numbers are coming from. We can always go back to taking out the ISIS/DTE/Al-Qaeda/DWSD syndicate afterwards.

Have you compared the usage numbers billed from month-to-month? What do they read? DTE now has an app for your smartphone where you can monitor energy usage in real-time. If you download it you will be able to see when the spikes in usage are coming from.

From there you can better deduce the culprit.

[thoro]

[QUOTE=corktownyuppie;452827]Let's suspend the evil conspiracy talk until you rule out usage issues. I know that rates have not gone up by 50% in the last few months, so the key is finding out where the usage numbers are coming from. We can always go back to taking out the ISIS/DTE/Al-Qaeda/DWSD syndicate afterwards.

Have you compared the usage numbers billed from month-to-month? What do they read? DTE now has an app for your smartphone where you can monitor energy usage in real-time. If you download it you will be able to se

My water bill 5 years ago was in the $28 range, now it is $39.84. THAT is the minimum. I blame the corruption within the department AND the huge number of people who simply do not pay their water bill.

[Kevgoblue]

My water bill 5 years ago was in the $28 range, now it is $39.84. THAT is the minimum. I blame the corruption within the department AND the huge number of people who simply do not pay their water bill.

I dont understand people's outrage over their water bills. $40. That's something to bitch about? And blame on "corruption and the huge number of people who don't pay"? Really? How much is your cell phone bill? How about the monthly cable / internet charge? How much does it cost to fill the car with gas? Heaven forbid you drive a truck.

We need water. And I very much appreciate receiving clean water [[especially considering the condition DSWD gets it back in). $40. I'll pay it. Gladly.

[Dumpling]

For DWSD there was an eight percent rate increase approved by the Detroit City
Council recently - the specified purpose of this rate increase was for capital
improvements. This increase was approved prior to the GLWA announcement.

[Dumpling]

I went to a community meeting at a neighborhood church sometime last March.
A church parishioner alerted me to the fact that there was a sewer in front of the
church that was totally blocked. This caused an ice rink in front of the church -
not good for weddings or funerals. Could I do anything about it? Well, I would try.
Apparently someone from the church had contacted DWSD earlier and nothing
happened. I called the repair number. There will be a repair order number for
any pending repair job. DWSD had none on file for this church, so I requested a repair
for the sewer. The sewer was located on a cross street, not the church's address
street, so I thought it was very possible that repair persons had come out and checked
the church's address street and found all of the sewers there to be okay, so I
specifically mentioned that the sewer needing attention was on the cross street.

[DetroitPlanner]

I went to a community meeting at a neighborhood church sometime last March.
A church parishioner alerted me to the fact that there was a sewer in front of the
church that was totally blocked. This caused an ice rink in front of the church -
not good for weddings or funerals. Could I do anything about it? Well, I would try.
Apparently someone from the church had contacted DWSD earlier and nothing
happened. I called the repair number. There will be a repair order number for
any pending repair job. DWSD had none on file for this church, so I requested a repair
for the sewer. The sewer was located on a cross street, not the church's address
street, so I thought it was very possible that repair persons had come out and checked
the church's address street and found all of the sewers there to be okay, so I
specifically mentioned that the sewer needing attention was on the cross street.

DWSD does not control the catch basins. Those are storm drains and are DPW jurisdiction.

[Dumpling]

Holy Week came and went with no repair. A month passed with no repair. I called,
and the work order number was still in the system. Sometime during the next month
there was a water main break in the neighborhood that was fixed within three days.
I believe that there were two contractor firms as well as DWSD staff working on the
water and sewerage systems at that time - it was a severe winter for them.
By the end of the second month the church sewer was fixed. That was your DWSD
money at work.

[poobert]

I dont understand people's outrage over their water bills. $40. That's something to bitch about? And blame on "corruption and the huge number of people who don't pay"? Really? How much is your cell phone bill? How about the monthly cable / internet charge? How much does it cost to fill the car with gas? Heaven forbid you drive a truck.

We need water. And I very much appreciate receiving clean water [[especially considering the condition DSWD gets it back in). $40. I'll pay it. Gladly.

I'm glad you have $40 to piss about, but I don't; I wasn't born with a silver spoon. Some of us are watching every dime. Don't drive a truck and don't have a TV, either.

[Wesley Mouch]

I dont understand people's outrage over their water bills. $40. That's something to bitch about? And blame on "corruption and the huge number of people who don't pay"? Really? How much is your cell phone bill? How about the monthly cable / internet charge? How much does it cost to fill the car with gas? Heaven forbid you drive a truck.

We need water. And I very much appreciate receiving clean water [[especially considering the condition DSWD gets it back in). $40. I'll pay it. Gladly.

No problem with $40.00 per month. Seems quite reasonble.

But if you remove the waste, maybe the bill would have been $30.00 a month. That would save Detroit residents $120 a year. Do you think this money is better spent on waste and unnecessary staff, or would be better in the pockets of Detroit residents?

[Gpwrangler]

I dont understand people's outrage over their water bills. $40. That's something to bitch about? And blame on "corruption and the huge number of people who don't pay"? Really? How much is your cell phone bill? How about the monthly cable / internet charge? How much does it cost to fill the car with gas? Heaven forbid you drive a truck.

We need water. And I very much appreciate receiving clean water [[especially considering the condition DSWD gets it back in). $40. I'll pay it. Gladly.

$40? I wish mine was that low. Still a good value though.

[corktownyuppie]

[QUOTE=thoro;452914]

Let's suspend the evil conspiracy talk until you rule out usage issues. I know that rates have not gone up by 50% in the last few months, so the key is finding out where the usage numbers are coming from. We can always go back to taking out the ISIS/DTE/Al-Qaeda/DWSD syndicate afterwards.

Have you compared the usage numbers billed from month-to-month? What do they read? DTE now has an app for your smartphone where you can monitor energy usage in real-time. If you download it you will be able to se

My water bill 5 years ago was in the $28 range, now it is $39.84. THAT is the minimum. I blame the corruption within the department AND the huge number of people who simply do not pay their water bill.

I am a vocal critic of the mismanagement and waste at DWSD. But there is a difference between your problem [[an increase of about 10% per year over 5 years) and the OP, who claims the bill went up by 50% in 3 months [[an increase of about 200% per year).

[lpg]

Not to change the subject, but speaking of DTE, I got a very high pressure call yesterday from a group wanting me to give them my DTE account number. She talked very fast and would not directly answer my questions. They were trying to switch me to another supplier. They gave the impression they were representing DTE. When I told them to leave a phone number and I would call them back, she told me to forget it and hung up. Called DTE and had a lock put on my account. Be aware

[Zacha341]

That was a 'scam-troll' call! I get them regarding fake employment 'opportunities' or trying to talk me into signing up for some utility scam. You can all but curse them out and they robotically keep talking, reading their tired script! Ending the call is the only thing that ends it. These so-called utility resellers are the worst. In the end you'll pay more and if you are late in payment: lights out. I'm not crazy for DTE but know better than get involved in a MLM scam promising to save me any money!

Not to change the subject, but speaking of DTE, I got a very high pressure call yesterday from a group wanting me to give them my DTE account number. She talked very fast and would not directly answer my questions. They were trying to switch me to another supplier. They gave the impression they were representing DTE. When I told them to leave a phone number and I would call them back, she told me to forget it and hung up. Called DTE and had a lock put on my account. Be aware

[Honky Tonk]

That was a 'scam-troll' call! I get them regarding fake employment 'opportunities' or trying to talk me into signing up for some utility scam. You can all but curse them out and they robotically keep talking, reading their tired script! Ending the call is the only thing that ends it. These so-called utility resellers are the worst. In the end you'll pay more and if you are late in payment: lights out. I'm not crazy for DTE but know better than get involved in a MLM scam promising to save me any money!

Not always. Unbeknownst to me, I had a distant relative in Nairobi die and leave me $1.8 mil. All I had to do was pay the Estate Executor of the Peoples Bank of Nairobi a $1700 transfer fee, and the money was mine. I gave them my bank account #, so as soon as the money gets transferred, I'm out of here.....

[Zacha341]

Oh really, eh I'm not greedy I just want half before you get into the wind -- I think I deserve a bit of something, sompin'......!

Not always. Unbeknownst to me, I had a distant relative in Nairobi die and leave me $1.8 mil. All I had to do was pay the Estate Executor of the Peoples Bank of Nairobi a $1700 transfer fee, and the money was mine. I gave them my bank account #, so as soon as the money gets transferred, I'm out of here.....

[Jimaz]

Not to change the subject, but speaking of DTE, I got a very high pressure call yesterday from a group wanting me to give them my DTE account number. She talked very fast and would not directly answer my questions. They were trying to switch me to another supplier. They gave the impression they were representing DTE. When I told them to leave a phone number and I would call them back, she told me to forget it and hung up. Called DTE and had a lock put on my account. Be aware

Sounds like some variation of slamming.

[Willi]

According a recent study , Detroit water/sewer are not that bad, compared to other places

Attachment 24490

[DetroitPlanner]

According a recent study , Detroit water/sewer are not that bad, compared to other places

Attachment 24490

$70 a YEAR???? Hmmmm......

[thoro]

What year is that chart from? My monthly water bill is $39.84.....that's over $450 per year. My monthly bill is the rock, bottom minimum.