City of Joburg is coming after prepaid users
The City of Joburg’s Group Finance Department says it is going after prepaid customers who are dodging payments for services they consume.
The city said it has noticed an increase in the number of prepaid customers – both business and residential – who are not paying for services such as refuse, sewer and property rates.
“These are customers who have either converted to prepaid electricity and or prepaid water meters,” it said. Because of the move to prepaid, it appears as if many of these customers have now neglected or disregarded payments for other services.
The city provides five services to customers, namely, electricity, water, sewer, refuse collection and property rates – all of which are charged to property owners monthly.
Spokesperson for the city’s Group Finance Department, Kgamanyane Maphologela, said that it will soon invoke its Credit Control and Debt Collection Policy to recover the debt owed.
“The amended Credit Control and Debt Collection Policy empowers our Credit Control unit to recuperate the outstanding debt from other services from prepaid customers,” said Maphologela.
The amended Credit Control and Debt Collection Policy was approved by the city council on 31 August 2022. Under the new amendments, “the city reserves the right to offset a percentage portion of any arrear debt against the purchases of prepaid units.”
“If a customer on prepaid electricity purchases the electricity units worth R1,800, and has an outstanding debt on other services, then the city will deduct a percentage portion of the debt from prepaid units,” said Maphologela.
The spokesperson said that the new Credit Control and Debt Collection Policy also makes it illegal for customers to illegally connect to the electricity grid and water supply.
“The illegal connection and/or tampering with water or electricity supply is a criminal offence, which may result in legal action being taken against the offending customers.”
The city said that any customers who are struggling to pay their bills should approach the city to sign the Acknowledgement of Debt in order to work out a payment arrangement.
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