Despite all the talk about water conservation, a large number of utilities around the country still rely on a flat rate system to deliver water to their customers. That said, the trend is definitely in favor of metering.
To “sweeten the deal” utilities converting to metered services increasingly are offering various bonus incentives such as free-of-charge metering device installation—and even a seven-year guarantee that customers can continue to pay non-metered rates if for some reason their home water bill is higher after the utility begins measuring their usage.
Still, there is some pushback as customers wonder, “What’s the catch?”
Utilities are well aware of the benefits of metering, but even for the environmentally conscientious customer, it is sometimes hard to see the value of conserving if it comes at the risk of paying more.
If your system is currently considering converting from non-metered to metered water service, Water & Wastes Digest would like to know: How are you overcoming some of the main barriers for meter deployment? E-mail us at [email protected] to share your experiences.
