Dear Revdex.com, ? Thank you for giving Tacoma Public Utilities’ Customer Services department the opportunity to review Mr [redacted] concern ? I am happy to report that a supervisor, KW [redacted] ? spoke to Mr [redacted] on February 10, regarding his concerns.? ? They? discussed how our dispute process works once an account has been submitted to collections and the? supervisor? was able to confirm that no adverse credit activity, such as credit bureau reporting or collection agency fees, had occurred on Mr [redacted] balance in collections ? Mr [redacted] remitted payment in the amount of $to Municipal Services Bureau and on February 14, 2017.? The same? supervisor left a voicemail for Mr [redacted] confirming that our records reflect a zero balance and that no credit reporting would occur on the balance submitted to collections ? I believe that this matter has been satisfactorily resolved, if Mr [redacted] would like to discuss this matter further he is welcome to call us to discuss this matter further ?
Complaint: [redacted] I am rejecting this response because: Is TPU really this disorganized?? How could they have sent the dispute form to the wrong address on file when they sent us a bill to the only address we are living at?? On top of that, the account was closed with a paid in full bill on OCt by I assume the person who bought our old house? Does no one communicate over there?? This is a perfect example of a lousy company with piss poor management and employees.? Sincerely, [redacted] ***
Good afternoon, Per your request for clarification: ? 1) On October 7th the power account for [redacted] ST S was paid in full.? It was paid through the escrow process? 2) TPU does not consider the charges erroneous and therefore they were quoted and paid as part of the escrow process.? Ms [redacted] (the account holder) voluntarily? signed an owner guarantee on 7/8/2015? in which she? agreed to be accountable for all charges of her tenant.? In exchange, we waived the tenant's deposit (a deposit would have paid off the charges in question.)? I understand that it can be frustrating to pay for meter equipment due to a? third party, but the meter was tampered with and therefore required servicing.? Again, these charges would have been paid by the tenant's deposit, but there was no deposit as Ms [redacted] voluntarily agreed to pay all charges of her tenant.? These charges have now been paid through the escrow process by the new home owner.? Any requests to dispute these charges would go through the new owner as they would be the one refunded in the event of an error of assessment.? ? Thank you,John H [redacted] Operations ManagerTPU Customer Services
Thank you Mr [redacted] for providing this paperwork.? I will contact MSB today in regards to this dispute.? I will follow up options after that contact Thank you again, [redacted] H [redacted] Operations ManagerTacoma Public Utilites Customer Services
Thank you for allowing me this opportunity to respond to the customer’s concern.First, I apologize for the long delays Mr [redacted] received in relation to this service charge.? To remain in compliance with varies consumer protection requirements our staff has limited visibility into the financial data customers enter into the online bill payment system.? However, we were able to confirm that an invalid routing number was entered on 8/17/when Mr [redacted] scheduled his 8/20/payment.? ? ? As this error lead to the payment being rejected we assessed a returned item fee of $to recover the costs associated with returned items.? ? ? This is a common practice at utilities and many other companies to ensure that costs incurred as a result of the customer’s account not being available for payment are passed on to the customer.Second, it appears that we were not clear in our explanation.? Again, I apologize.? To be clear, we did attempt to collect this payment with the banking information supplied by Mr [redacted] and that payment request was declined.? ? ? Finally, the notes indicate that we did offer to waive this fee for Mr [redacted] due to the delay in being able to explain the exact reason it was assessed.? A delay in explanation is not typically considered a valid reason for waiving this fee, however, it was offered and would have therefore been honored.? The only condition for waiver was for the customer to still make the payment.? We accept payments directly over the phone without fee, so Mr [redacted] had the opportunity to make this payment during any one of the referenced phone calls.? As of this response, the payment has not been receivedIf there are any additional questions or concerns please let me know.Sincerely, John H [redacted] Customer Services Operations Manager
Complaint: [redacted] I am rejecting this response because:I don’t have a problem with your policyI have a problem with charging someone extra to turn on something We could do ourselvesI have a problem with supervisors lack of customer serviceI have a problem with how I keep hearing the same repeated explanation over and over again with no reasoning or understanding of where I’m coming fromThere is no helping or taking things to a further state of policies changingTPU has an ongoing issue of the same policy and “rules” I am dealing withI have read so many other reviews of this policy being an issue and I think that should be obvious as to how it should be changedI have no problem paying my bill and have fullyThat was never an issueIt was the fact that the letter you speak of that says the dates and informs me that if we miss one our utilities will be shut off, even if on a payment planAnd the fact that is is unreasonable how much the minimum payment plan is$payments is the minimum? My rent is 1,plus your $something bill and you set me up on an unreasonable payment plan and then don’t inform me that if I’m busy out making money to pay that bill and miss it that day that I don’t get a letter or phone call saying “hey reminder, you are on a payment plan.” Many other reasons other than the $reservicing fee that could be discussedAnd I know my payment options, and the automated system doesn’t work so well when trying to pay my bill is not my fault Sincerely, [redacted]
Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ***, and find that this resolution is satisfactory to me
Sincerely,
*** ***
Complaint: ***I am rejecting this response because:First, it has yet to be established that I entered an invalid routing numberIn fact, my most recent conversation with customer service suggests that a technology error for TPU is at least as likelyGwen indicated that the routing number entered belonged to a *** ** *** check card from Washington State, not an actual checking accountI have no *** ** *** account at all, and I did not attempt to pay the account with a *** ** *** check card or anything of the sortOn two occasions, Gwen has read portions of routing/checking numbers to me that I allegedly enteredAlthough TPU has suggested several possibilities, each time confident that THIS was the number I actually entered, none of the number sequences read back to me are at all similar to my actual routing or checking accounts, which makes me skeptical that I entered a number incorrectlyWhy would there be so much confusion in TPU's systems about that number I entered? Ultimately, my primary complaint here is--and has been--that you need to provide me some confirmation that I actually entered an invalid number and no technological glitch on your end is responsibleI think this is a reasonable request, especially given the confusion on TPU's end about what number was enteredIn case that a glitch is incorrectly triggering a fee, I want to know this so that I can make other payment arrangements. Regarding the offer to waive the fee, no such offer occurredYour notes are wrongGwen told me that no action regarding the fee could be taken until "we got to the bottom of this." She told me this twice, both in the initial phone call (before I filed the complaint) and again after I filed the complaintDuring the first call, I waited on hold for minutes for you to get to the bottom of thisIn the second call, she said that you would get to the bottom of the issue this morningI continue to wait nowI accept your offer to waive the feeI will happily pay what I owe for utilities once this is resolved, and I've never indicated otherwiseI asked about paying the fee over the phone and I was told that paying over the phone was not possible (due to privacy concerns)If you record your phone calls, you can listen back and see for yourself. Lastly, I find it dubious that you incur $in costs due to an invalid routing number for an electronic checkOne can download an application from the internet that allows free transfer of money from one checking account to anotherNo cost for the applicationNo cost for processingEntering a routing number incorrectly incurs no fee from these providersI understand incurring a $fee for overdrawing an account, but not for entering an invalid routing numberPlease provide examples of other utility companies that operate similarly, where online payments with a mis-entered routing number incur a $feeI'm very interested to know what other companies operate this way. Sincerely,*** ***
Thank you for your helpTPU has informed me they will start my account and I have already paid the past due starting from the sale date 12/10/Confirm ***
Please close this
Best***
Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ***, and find that this resolution is satisfactory to me
The owner refused to allow access when I called an electrician when I lived there and TPU did not want to help when I called for helpI lost thousands of dollars due to the cross wiring and think you guys should invistehate for the sake of other tenants.
Sincerely,
*** ***
I apologize that my earlier message was unclear and appreciate the opportunity to try again.
We do not require a new tenant to pay a prior tenant’s charges if they are a new tenant. In your case, you were co-tenants and used the services in question as you indicated that your co-tenant moved out in November of
As for the security deposit, I understand the confusion about why a deposit would be charged when your co-tenant moved out. All customers are assessed a security deposit. We do, however, provide waiver options for all deposits. When your co-tenant established services they qualified for a deposit waiver. The same waiver options were provided in your deposit request letter. That letter indicated that there was days, starting on 2/27/2018, to elect and provide any documentation related to a deposit waiver option.
I hope this helps clarify my prior answers. If you have additional questions you can reach our office at 253-502-8038, Monday through Friday, 8:00am -5:30pm. Thank you
Good afternoon,
Per your request for clarification:
1) On October 7th the power account for *** *** ST S was paid in full. It was paid through the escrow process 2) TPU does not consider the charges erroneous and therefore they were quoted and paid as part of the escrow process. Ms*** (the account holder) voluntarily signed an owner guarantee on 7/8/2015 in which she agreed to be accountable for all charges of her tenant. In exchange, we waived the tenant's deposit (a deposit would have paid off the charges in question.) I understand that it can be frustrating to pay for meter equipment due to a third party, but the meter was tampered with and therefore required servicing. Again, these charges would have been paid by the tenant's deposit, but there was no deposit as Ms*** voluntarily agreed to pay all charges of her tenant.
These charges have now been paid through the escrow process by the new home owner. Any requests to dispute these charges would go through the new owner as they would be the one refunded in the event of an error of assessment.
Thank you,John H***Operations ManagerTPU Customer Services
Revdex.com:I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ***, and find that this resolution is satisfactory to me MrH*** was able to recall the account from MSB and removed any applicable late charges.Sincerely, *** ***
Complaint: ***
I am rejecting this response because: it shouldn't matter if I don't live there anymoreI had records sent to me that proved my electric bill was 2x higher than the lower u it for the three years I lived thereI want an investigation started
Sincerely,
*** ***
Please find the response our response to the customer, emailed on 9/16/2016. If the customer has any additional questions please feel free to contact our office at 253-502-8600. I should also note that we mailed a dispute form to Ms*** on 9/16/2016. We received a mail return on
11/2/with the dispute form indicating that we had an incomplete or incorrect forwarding address.
Dear *** ***,
Thank you for contacting Tacoma Public Utilities Customer ServiceWe have received your request for dispute forms for Account # *** # *** *** StSSpanaway, WA
We have requested to have our support services team mail you the dispute forms to the forwarding address on file at *** *** *** *Tacoma, WA If you decide to proceed with the dispute forms, please note that the turn around time for the dispute once initiated is a very quick time frame and it#s important to ensure the forms are returned to our office as soon as possible
Otherwise, if you would like to come in to the office in person and fill out the forms in-house, you are welcome to do so as wellWe are located at S35th StTacoma, WA Our lobby hours are Monday thru Friday from 8:am to 5:pm
If you need further assistance, please contact us at 253-502-8600, Monday thru Friday, 8:am # 6:pm
Respectfully,
Lisa
Customer Service Representative
Tacoma Public Utilities
First, I apologize for the delay in responding to this concern. An invalid point of contact was listed for our company. In looking at the account it appears that services are no longer provided to this customer at this address so we will be unable to resolve this concern. Should
a concern of this nature occur again, TPU has troubleshooting steps so that tenants can determine if cross wiring between units is a possibility. If necessary, TPU can disconnect power at the meter to determine if services/power has been turned off in the other unit. Again, we would be happy to walk through these steps if a cross wiring concern is present in the future. Thank you,
John H***Customer Services Operations Manager
Thank you for allowing me this opportunity to respond to the customer’s concern.First, I apologize for the long delays Mr*** received in relation to this service charge. To remain in compliance with varies consumer protection requirements our staff has limited visibility into the
financial data customers enter into the online bill payment system. However, we were able to confirm that an invalid routing number was entered on 8/17/when Mr*** scheduled his 8/20/payment. As this error lead to the payment being rejected we assessed a returned item fee of $to recover the costs associated with returned items. This is a common practice at utilities and many other companies to ensure that costs incurred as a result of the customer’s account not being available for payment are passed on to the customer.Second, it appears that we were not clear in our explanation. Again, I apologize. To be clear, we did attempt to collect this payment with the banking information supplied by Mr*** and that payment request was declined. Finally, the notes indicate that we did offer to waive this fee for Mr*** due to the delay in being able to explain the exact reason it was assessed. A delay in explanation is not typically considered a valid reason for waiving this fee, however, it was offered and would have therefore been honored. The only condition for waiver was for the customer to still make the payment. We accept payments directly over the phone without fee, so Mr*** had the opportunity to make this payment during any one of the referenced phone calls. As of this response, the payment has not been receivedIf there are any additional questions or concerns please let me know.Sincerely, John H***Customer Services Operations Manager
Thank you for bringing this concern to our attention.
Mr*** and Supervisor ** *** have been communicating about this issue. Due to a vacation conflict with Mr*** we have been responding through email so this issue is still in
progress. We have also reached out to the apartment complex to see if the apartment is willing to take responsibility for any portion of the charges as they provided us Mr*** dates and unit of tenancy As of yet the apartment complex has not contacted us back.
We anticipate being back in contact with all parties next week.
Sincerely,
John H***
Operations Manager
Tacoma Public Utilities
Complaint: ***I am rejecting this response because: Is TPU really this disorganized? How could they have sent the dispute form to the wrong address on file when they sent us a bill to the only address we are living at? On top of that, the account was closed with a paid in full bill on OCt by I assume the person who bought our old house Does no one communicate over there? This is a perfect example of a lousy company with piss poor management and employees. Sincerely,*** ***
Dear Revdex.com,
Thank you for giving Tacoma Public Utilities’ Customer Services department the opportunity to review Mr*** concern
I am happy to report that a supervisor, KW*** spoke to Mr*** on February 10, regarding his
concerns. They discussed how our dispute process works once an account has been submitted to collections and the supervisor was able to confirm that no adverse credit activity, such as credit bureau reporting or collection agency fees, had occurred on Mr*** balance in collections
Mr*** remitted payment in the amount of $to Municipal Services Bureau and on February 14, 2017. The same supervisor left a voicemail for Mr*** confirming that our records reflect a zero balance and that no credit reporting would occur on the balance submitted to collections
I believe that this matter has been satisfactorily resolved, if Mr*** would like to discuss this matter further he is welcome to call us to discuss this matter further
Dear Revdex.com, ? Thank you for giving Tacoma Public Utilities’ Customer Services department the opportunity to review Mr [redacted] concern ? I am happy to report that a supervisor, KW [redacted] ? spoke to Mr [redacted] on February 10, regarding his concerns.? ? They? discussed how our dispute process works once an account has been submitted to collections and the? supervisor? was able to confirm that no adverse credit activity, such as credit bureau reporting or collection agency fees, had occurred on Mr [redacted] balance in collections ? Mr [redacted] remitted payment in the amount of $to Municipal Services Bureau and on February 14, 2017.? The same? supervisor left a voicemail for Mr [redacted] confirming that our records reflect a zero balance and that no credit reporting would occur on the balance submitted to collections ? I believe that this matter has been satisfactorily resolved, if Mr [redacted] would like to discuss this matter further he is welcome to call us to discuss this matter further ?
Complaint: [redacted] I am rejecting this response because: Is TPU really this disorganized?? How could they have sent the dispute form to the wrong address on file when they sent us a bill to the only address we are living at?? On top of that, the account was closed with a paid in full bill on OCt by I assume the person who bought our old house? Does no one communicate over there?? This is a perfect example of a lousy company with piss poor management and employees.? Sincerely, [redacted] ***
Good afternoon, Per your request for clarification: ? 1) On October 7th the power account for [redacted] ST S was paid in full.? It was paid through the escrow process? 2) TPU does not consider the charges erroneous and therefore they were quoted and paid as part of the escrow process.? Ms [redacted] (the account holder) voluntarily? signed an owner guarantee on 7/8/2015? in which she? agreed to be accountable for all charges of her tenant.? In exchange, we waived the tenant's deposit (a deposit would have paid off the charges in question.)? I understand that it can be frustrating to pay for meter equipment due to a? third party, but the meter was tampered with and therefore required servicing.? Again, these charges would have been paid by the tenant's deposit, but there was no deposit as Ms [redacted] voluntarily agreed to pay all charges of her tenant.? These charges have now been paid through the escrow process by the new home owner.? Any requests to dispute these charges would go through the new owner as they would be the one refunded in the event of an error of assessment.? ? Thank you,John H [redacted] Operations ManagerTPU Customer Services
Thank you Mr [redacted] for providing this paperwork.? I will contact MSB today in regards to this dispute.? I will follow up options after that contact Thank you again, [redacted] H [redacted] Operations ManagerTacoma Public Utilites Customer Services
Thank you for allowing me this opportunity to respond to the customer’s concern.First, I apologize for the long delays Mr [redacted] received in relation to this service charge.? To remain in compliance with varies consumer protection requirements our staff has limited visibility into the financial data customers enter into the online bill payment system.? However, we were able to confirm that an invalid routing number was entered on 8/17/when Mr [redacted] scheduled his 8/20/payment.? ? ? As this error lead to the payment being rejected we assessed a returned item fee of $to recover the costs associated with returned items.? ? ? This is a common practice at utilities and many other companies to ensure that costs incurred as a result of the customer’s account not being available for payment are passed on to the customer.Second, it appears that we were not clear in our explanation.? Again, I apologize.? To be clear, we did attempt to collect this payment with the banking information supplied by Mr [redacted] and that payment request was declined.? ? ? Finally, the notes indicate that we did offer to waive this fee for Mr [redacted] due to the delay in being able to explain the exact reason it was assessed.? A delay in explanation is not typically considered a valid reason for waiving this fee, however, it was offered and would have therefore been honored.? The only condition for waiver was for the customer to still make the payment.? We accept payments directly over the phone without fee, so Mr [redacted] had the opportunity to make this payment during any one of the referenced phone calls.? As of this response, the payment has not been receivedIf there are any additional questions or concerns please let me know.Sincerely, John H [redacted] Customer Services Operations Manager
Complaint: [redacted] I am rejecting this response because:I don’t have a problem with your policyI have a problem with charging someone extra to turn on something We could do ourselvesI have a problem with supervisors lack of customer serviceI have a problem with how I keep hearing the same repeated explanation over and over again with no reasoning or understanding of where I’m coming fromThere is no helping or taking things to a further state of policies changingTPU has an ongoing issue of the same policy and “rules” I am dealing withI have read so many other reviews of this policy being an issue and I think that should be obvious as to how it should be changedI have no problem paying my bill and have fullyThat was never an issueIt was the fact that the letter you speak of that says the dates and informs me that if we miss one our utilities will be shut off, even if on a payment planAnd the fact that is is unreasonable how much the minimum payment plan is$payments is the minimum? My rent is 1,plus your $something bill and you set me up on an unreasonable payment plan and then don’t inform me that if I’m busy out making money to pay that bill and miss it that day that I don’t get a letter or phone call saying “hey reminder, you are on a payment plan.” Many other reasons other than the $reservicing fee that could be discussedAnd I know my payment options, and the automated system doesn’t work so well when trying to pay my bill is not my fault Sincerely, [redacted]
Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ***, and find that this resolution is satisfactory to me
Sincerely,
*** ***
Complaint: ***I am rejecting this response because:First, it has yet to be established that I entered an invalid routing numberIn fact, my most recent conversation with customer service suggests that a technology error for TPU is at least as likelyGwen indicated that the routing number entered belonged to a *** ** *** check card from Washington State, not an actual checking accountI have no *** ** *** account at all, and I did not attempt to pay the account with a *** ** *** check card or anything of the sortOn two occasions, Gwen has read portions of routing/checking numbers to me that I allegedly enteredAlthough TPU has suggested several possibilities, each time confident that THIS was the number I actually entered, none of the number sequences read back to me are at all similar to my actual routing or checking accounts, which makes me skeptical that I entered a number incorrectlyWhy would there be so much confusion in TPU's systems about that number I entered? Ultimately, my primary complaint here is--and has been--that you need to provide me some confirmation that I actually entered an invalid number and no technological glitch on your end is responsibleI think this is a reasonable request, especially given the confusion on TPU's end about what number was enteredIn case that a glitch is incorrectly triggering a fee, I want to know this so that I can make other payment arrangements. Regarding the offer to waive the fee, no such offer occurredYour notes are wrongGwen told me that no action regarding the fee could be taken until "we got to the bottom of this." She told me this twice, both in the initial phone call (before I filed the complaint) and again after I filed the complaintDuring the first call, I waited on hold for minutes for you to get to the bottom of thisIn the second call, she said that you would get to the bottom of the issue this morningI continue to wait nowI accept your offer to waive the feeI will happily pay what I owe for utilities once this is resolved, and I've never indicated otherwiseI asked about paying the fee over the phone and I was told that paying over the phone was not possible (due to privacy concerns)If you record your phone calls, you can listen back and see for yourself. Lastly, I find it dubious that you incur $in costs due to an invalid routing number for an electronic checkOne can download an application from the internet that allows free transfer of money from one checking account to anotherNo cost for the applicationNo cost for processingEntering a routing number incorrectly incurs no fee from these providersI understand incurring a $fee for overdrawing an account, but not for entering an invalid routing numberPlease provide examples of other utility companies that operate similarly, where online payments with a mis-entered routing number incur a $feeI'm very interested to know what other companies operate this way. Sincerely,*** ***
Thank you for your helpTPU has informed me they will start my account and I have already paid the past due starting from the sale date 12/10/Confirm ***
Please close this
Best***
Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ***, and find that this resolution is satisfactory to me
The owner refused to allow access when I called an electrician when I lived there and TPU did not want to help when I called for helpI lost thousands of dollars due to the cross wiring and think you guys should invistehate for the sake of other tenants.
Sincerely,
*** ***
I apologize that my earlier message was unclear and appreciate the opportunity to try again.
We do not require a new tenant to pay a prior tenant’s charges if they are a new tenant. In your case, you were co-tenants and used the services in question as you indicated that your co-tenant moved out in November of
As for the security deposit, I understand the confusion about why a deposit would be charged when your co-tenant moved out. All customers are assessed a security deposit. We do, however, provide waiver options for all deposits. When your co-tenant established services they qualified for a deposit waiver. The same waiver options were provided in your deposit request letter. That letter indicated that there was days, starting on 2/27/2018, to elect and provide any documentation related to a deposit waiver option.
I hope this helps clarify my prior answers. If you have additional questions you can reach our office at 253-502-8038, Monday through Friday, 8:00am -5:30pm. Thank you
Good afternoon,
Per your request for clarification:
1) On October 7th the power account for *** *** ST S was paid in full. It was paid through the escrow process 2) TPU does not consider the charges erroneous and therefore they were quoted and paid as part of the escrow process. Ms*** (the account holder) voluntarily signed an owner guarantee on 7/8/2015 in which she agreed to be accountable for all charges of her tenant. In exchange, we waived the tenant's deposit (a deposit would have paid off the charges in question.) I understand that it can be frustrating to pay for meter equipment due to a third party, but the meter was tampered with and therefore required servicing. Again, these charges would have been paid by the tenant's deposit, but there was no deposit as Ms*** voluntarily agreed to pay all charges of her tenant.
These charges have now been paid through the escrow process by the new home owner. Any requests to dispute these charges would go through the new owner as they would be the one refunded in the event of an error of assessment.
Thank you,John H***Operations ManagerTPU Customer Services
Revdex.com:I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ***, and find that this resolution is satisfactory to me MrH*** was able to recall the account from MSB and removed any applicable late charges.Sincerely, *** ***
Complaint: ***
I am rejecting this response because: it shouldn't matter if I don't live there anymoreI had records sent to me that proved my electric bill was 2x higher than the lower u it for the three years I lived thereI want an investigation started
Sincerely,
*** ***
Please find the response our response to the customer, emailed on 9/16/2016. If the customer has any additional questions please feel free to contact our office at 253-502-8600. I should also note that we mailed a dispute form to Ms*** on 9/16/2016. We received a mail return on
11/2/with the dispute form indicating that we had an incomplete or incorrect forwarding address.
Dear *** ***,
Thank you for contacting Tacoma Public Utilities Customer ServiceWe have received your request for dispute forms for Account # *** # *** *** StSSpanaway, WA
We have requested to have our support services team mail you the dispute forms to the forwarding address on file at *** *** *** *Tacoma, WA If you decide to proceed with the dispute forms, please note that the turn around time for the dispute once initiated is a very quick time frame and it#s important to ensure the forms are returned to our office as soon as possible
Otherwise, if you would like to come in to the office in person and fill out the forms in-house, you are welcome to do so as wellWe are located at S35th StTacoma, WA Our lobby hours are Monday thru Friday from 8:am to 5:pm
If you need further assistance, please contact us at 253-502-8600, Monday thru Friday, 8:am # 6:pm
Respectfully,
Lisa
Customer Service Representative
Tacoma Public Utilities
First, I apologize for the delay in responding to this concern. An invalid point of contact was listed for our company. In looking at the account it appears that services are no longer provided to this customer at this address so we will be unable to resolve this concern. Should
a concern of this nature occur again, TPU has troubleshooting steps so that tenants can determine if cross wiring between units is a possibility. If necessary, TPU can disconnect power at the meter to determine if services/power has been turned off in the other unit. Again, we would be happy to walk through these steps if a cross wiring concern is present in the future. Thank you,
John H***Customer Services Operations Manager
Thank you for allowing me this opportunity to respond to the customer’s concern.First, I apologize for the long delays Mr*** received in relation to this service charge. To remain in compliance with varies consumer protection requirements our staff has limited visibility into the
financial data customers enter into the online bill payment system. However, we were able to confirm that an invalid routing number was entered on 8/17/when Mr*** scheduled his 8/20/payment. As this error lead to the payment being rejected we assessed a returned item fee of $to recover the costs associated with returned items. This is a common practice at utilities and many other companies to ensure that costs incurred as a result of the customer’s account not being available for payment are passed on to the customer.Second, it appears that we were not clear in our explanation. Again, I apologize. To be clear, we did attempt to collect this payment with the banking information supplied by Mr*** and that payment request was declined. Finally, the notes indicate that we did offer to waive this fee for Mr*** due to the delay in being able to explain the exact reason it was assessed. A delay in explanation is not typically considered a valid reason for waiving this fee, however, it was offered and would have therefore been honored. The only condition for waiver was for the customer to still make the payment. We accept payments directly over the phone without fee, so Mr*** had the opportunity to make this payment during any one of the referenced phone calls. As of this response, the payment has not been receivedIf there are any additional questions or concerns please let me know.Sincerely, John H***Customer Services Operations Manager
Thank you for bringing this concern to our attention.
Mr*** and Supervisor ** *** have been communicating about this issue. Due to a vacation conflict with Mr*** we have been responding through email so this issue is still in
progress. We have also reached out to the apartment complex to see if the apartment is willing to take responsibility for any portion of the charges as they provided us Mr*** dates and unit of tenancy As of yet the apartment complex has not contacted us back.
We anticipate being back in contact with all parties next week.
Sincerely,
John H***
Operations Manager
Tacoma Public Utilities
Complaint: ***I am rejecting this response because: Is TPU really this disorganized? How could they have sent the dispute form to the wrong address on file when they sent us a bill to the only address we are living at? On top of that, the account was closed with a paid in full bill on OCt by I assume the person who bought our old house Does no one communicate over there? This is a perfect example of a lousy company with piss poor management and employees. Sincerely,*** ***
Dear Revdex.com,
Thank you for giving Tacoma Public Utilities’ Customer Services department the opportunity to review Mr*** concern
I am happy to report that a supervisor, KW*** spoke to Mr*** on February 10, regarding his
concerns. They discussed how our dispute process works once an account has been submitted to collections and the supervisor was able to confirm that no adverse credit activity, such as credit bureau reporting or collection agency fees, had occurred on Mr*** balance in collections
Mr*** remitted payment in the amount of $to Municipal Services Bureau and on February 14, 2017. The same supervisor left a voicemail for Mr*** confirming that our records reflect a zero balance and that no credit reporting would occur on the balance submitted to collections
I believe that this matter has been satisfactorily resolved, if Mr*** would like to discuss this matter further he is welcome to call us to discuss this matter further