COBB COUNTY, Ga. — The Cobb County Water System announced Tuesday some customers might experience delays in their bills.
The company said staff shortages were brought on by the contractor they use to read residents' meters. Officials said that the holidays and extreme weather also impacted staffing– delaying the billing cycle.
"Due to vendor issues, we are estimating usage on more routes than usual to avoid further delays and to prevent longer-than-typical meter reading cycles," the company said.
The company uses both in-person and estimated readings, which are based on previous water use if its meter isn't accessible. Residents can look at their bills under the "present reading" section to check.
Most customers will receive a bill with their estimated reading next month.
Officials said that customers who might have to pay late for the delay will NOT receive a late fee and will have 18 days from the date the bill was processed.
The company is trying to work with its vendor to resolve the problem, officials said.
If your typical due date is approaching and you're on a fixed income, then you may want to go ahead and pay an amount– similar to your typical monthly bill. This will help offset any increase from the longer billing cycle.
The Cobb County Water System said the meters used are reading water ranges from when it was first installed, so water usage is based on the amount used in between bills.
Some customers can experience longer billing cycles, causing them to seem higher than normal. Cobb officials said that customers are still only being charged for water and sewer that they use, but a lower bill will be issued a few months after the higher bill to balance them out.
Customers who are still waiting on their bills should visit their portal. For more information on a missing or delayed bill, customers should visit here.
The company issued a statement for customers still having issues with their bills.
"We apologize for the inconvenience, and we are working with the company that reads meters for Cobb Water to resolve this issue as quickly as possible," the Cobb County Water System said.
