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July 9, 2020 • Local News

Lower Valley Water District cuts off service to some delinquent customers

Story Link: https://kfoxtv.com/news/local/lower-valley-water-district-cuts-off-service-to-some-delinquent-customers

Lower Valley Water District cuts off service to some delinquent customers

Socorro, TX (KFOX14) — A viewer turned to KFOX14 after his water was shut off during the pandemic.

Isaias Martinez lives in Socorro with his wife and three kids.

Wednesday morning their water was shut off for failure to pay.

He says he's struggling to find work because of the pandemic.

"I had some money, a little bit of money, saved," Martinez said of his situation at the beginning of the pandemic. "So everything was fine."

He said his savings quickly ran dry and he fell behind on his bills.

His wife called Lower Valley Water District to discuss their situation and Martinez made partial payments.

"I'm gonna pay my bills. I'm just telling her to give me a little bit time," Martinez said.

On Friday, July 3, he paid $40 towards a bill of $106.

According to Lower Valley Water District, the bill of $106 was the minimum amount needed in order to keep the account active.

Martinez actually owed a larger amount.

He said that information was not clear but either way, he paid as much as he could.

KFOX14 spoke with Lower Valley Water District officials to find out why customers could see their water turned off during the pandemic.

"From the very beginning, we started with following El Paso Water's lead in waiving any delinquencies and not shutting off their water for delinquient accounts," said Gerald Grijalva, General Manager of Lower Valley Water District.

Unlike El Paso Water, Lower Valley Water District has had to evolve their policy since the start of the pandemic in order to keep the business running.

"We're trying to be very understanding of who's going through these emergencies, while at the same time making sure that we're able to cut our our losses to a minimum," Grijalva said.

Grijalva said compared to May 2019, the water company saw a 82 percent increase in delinquent accounts in May 2020.

He said customers who are struggling to pay their bills due to the pandemic need to contact customer service and explain their special circumstances, something he said Martinez did not clearly do.

Customer service representatives should give customers guidance on setting up payment plans or applying for CARES Act funding through the county.

"As customary, customers can always seek assistance from us when advised that their account in delinquent," he said. "We also advise customers of COVID-related assistance to those affected and continue to offer payment plans to our customers with a good payment history."

Grijalva also said the complications and miscommunications can arise when customers, like Martinez, use third-party payment agencies.

He said payment plans must be set up through Lower Valley Water District itself.

"I think our customers need to know that third-party payment agencies are only responsible to ensure that a payment is made and don’t represent the Lower Valley Water District’s Customer Service Department," Grijalva said.

After our investigation, Martinez was able to work out a plan with the Lower Valley Water District and his water was turned back on Wednesday afternoon.