5.1. ERMUSR 08-09-2011 - Laserfiche WebLink

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5.1 Elk River~~ Municipal Utilities UTILITIES COMMISSION MEETING TO: FROM: Elk River Municipal Utilities Commission David Berg -Water Superintendent John Dietz, Chair Daryl Thompson, Vice Chair AI Nadeau, Trustee MEETING DATE: AGENDA ITEM NUMBER: Au ust 9th, 2011 5.1 SUBJECT: Homeowner Water Service Insurance Pro ram The issue of water service damage has been a constant concern for both the utility and homeowners. The average cost of repair for a single family homeowner's service ranges anywhere from $900 to $4,000. This can be a hard sum of money to pay for out of pocket. There have been occasions where customers have said that they did not have the money to fix the water leak at the time of detection and instead let the leak go for over two years. The hesitation in repair puts the water system, the customer, and their neighbors in danger of cross contamination, structural damage, waterline bacteria and sediment intrusion. We propose that the commission consider the implementation of a Homeowner Water Service Coverage Program. Several other water suppliers currently hold a program for their customers, in the hope of protecting themselves and their customers from major water issues. ERMU comes across approximately one to two dozen water service issues each yeaz. By charging the customers who opt for coverage about $1.00 per month, we could help keep costs down and protect our water. The charge would be per water service. An extra $1.00 per unit for townhomes or shazed commercial properties with a single house meter would be issued (example: one building with eight condo units that has one house meter would be issued an $8.00 insurance fee). This larger fee would help fund the lazger water line, which would parallel with the higher cost if repair would ever be required for the multi-unit dwelling. Attached for reference: Rochester Public Utilities Water Service Insurance Policy