MWC, Maynilad suspend meter reading
The Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System (MWSS) has allowed Manila Water Co. Inc. (MWC) and Maynilad Water Services Inc. to suspend the reading of meters during the enhanced community quarantine, and instead bill customers based on their average monthly consumption in the past three months.Over the weekend, the two MWSS concessionaires said separately that they had temporarily suspended on-site meter reading and billing activities to comply with quarantine directives.Patrick Ty, chief regulator at the MWSS Regulatory Office (RO), said on Monday the companies were in fact ordered to stop the deployment of meter readers and to simply send their customers an average bill.“[U]pon resumption of regular operations, adjust charges on subsequent water bills based on the customer’s actual meter registration,” Ty said.
He added that the MWSS RO would closely monitor the concessionaires’ implementation of the average billing policy.
Manila Water said they had been doing so since March 17, but would resume “until further notice” and when the end of community quarantine had been officially confirmed.
The Ayala group subsidiary made this move “out of concern for the health and safety of its customers, as well as that of its employees and service providers.” Maynilad echoed this.“[A]ny difference versus actual consumption will be reflected and charges will be adjusted on the customers’ next bill when Manila Water resumes read-and-bill operations,” Manila Water said. Normal billing process will be observed when the government authorities officially confirm the end of the enhanced community quarantine.Maynilad said it had suspended meter reading and on-site billing since March 20 and “until the end of the quarantine period on April 14.”
“Corrections will just be applied to subsequent bills once Maynilad is able to resume the actual reading of meters,” Maynilad said.
Also, Maynilad encouraged its customers to pay their bills through online banking or mobile fund transfer channels. INQ
