By Madelaine B. Miraflor
Customers of Maynilad Water Services, Inc. and Manila Water Company, Inc. will soon receive their first actual water bill in four months, which will already reflect their consumption from March to June.
In a statement, Maynilad said on Thursday that following the resumption of actual meter reading beginning June 1, its customers in the West Zone will already receive a “transitional” water bill that will reflect actual billing and consumption for the months of March to May when the Enhanced Community Quarantine (ECQ) was placed, as well as the current actual billing and consumption for this month.
Manila Water, too, will do the same, with Manila Water's Corporate Communications Head Jeric Sevilla saying that the bill the company will deliver to customers in the East Zone “beginning Friday or Saturday will contain the actual reading and the distributed consumption for the ECQ months based on the actual reading taken.”
Maynilad customers, to be specific, will only receive one printed water bill for the months of March to June 2020.
“The total actual consumption is computed by subtracting the customer’s February 2020 meter reading from the actual meter reading in June. This was divided by four months to arrive at the monthly consumption from March to June, with each month billed separately based on the current tariff rate," Maynilad said.
To avoid the same “bill shock” that Manila Electric Company, Inc. (Meralco) consumers recently experienced, Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System (MWSS) earlier advised the customers of Manila Water and Maynilad to settle their statement of accounts at least in staggered amounts.
To recall, Maynilad and Manila Water customers have been granted an extended grace period to settle their water bills that have accumulated during the ECQ.
Lifeline customers (those who consume 10 cubic meters per month or less) have until August 31 to pay all their water bills, while Non-Lifeline customers (those who consume more than 10 cubic meters per month) have until July 31 to do it.
“Our customers can pay their accumulated bills in several installments within the extended grace period granted,” Maynilad said.
Meanwhile, in areas where ECQ is still enforced, the June 2020 water bill that customers will receive will continue to be based on their average consumption in the three months prior to ECQ. Adjustments will just be made in succeeding bills once actual meter reading can resume in these areas.
MWSS-Regulatory Office (MWSS-RO) earlier told Maynilad and Manila Water to “verify the consumption patterns of customers, check for irregularities, and automatically withhold any SOA with observed significant deviation from these patterns for further investigation and necessary adjustment.”