SAN ANTONIO – Antonio Cruz couldn’t believe the water bill to his empty home was roughly $400 during the summer.
His attempts to get San Antonio Water System (SAWS) customer services to resolve the problem were unsuccessful when he called and visited the office in person.
“It was so embarrassing. I was there, like, for almost an hour. I told him, ‘I’m not here to ask you for money. You know, I’m not here to ask you for a rebate. I’m here because I think I have an issue. And since I’m your customer, I want you guys to fix it, you know, or at least consider taking a look at it,’” Cruz said.
In August, Cruz called KSAT for help getting to the bottom of the problem. SAWS sent a statement supporting the accuracy of their electronic meters.
A week after the story aired, Cruz says the electronic meter was replaced again. A month later, the bill showed a credit to his account, and the water readings were back to normal levels.
“My advice to the neighbors out there, if they feel something is wrong with their bill, complain. You know, go in person, and if they have an outlet like, you know, I did with [KSAT], please do,” he said.
Cruz said some of his neighbors with high water bills didn’t think they would get SAWS to listen, so they simply paid the bill.
KSAT reached out to SAWS to find out if the other new electronic meters in the area were checked or replaced and what changes, if any, are being made to customers’ water service. The utility issued the following statement:
“Mr. Cruz’ account was a very unusual situation: while it appeared as a regular leak, it took several reviews and onsite troubleshooting to find the problem. SAWS ongoing commitment is to make it right when we find an issue, which we did.”