The_Waxies_Dargle t1_j0b8xhs wrote on December 15, 2022 at 11:47 AM

Reply to comment by smoovgee in once again water Bill by ChemicalElevator1380

Not the OP, but it's NOT the citizen's job to balance their checkbook to make sure DPW is doing their job. Most of those who pay online don't use a checking account (WARNING: DON'T GIVE ANY COMPANY DIRECT ACCESS TO ANY BANK ACCOUNT) but go on a credit card. It sure sounds like he/she/they are doing their part correctly.

The city accepting payment and is all the proof they (OP) needs. Unless, as the OP suggests, the DPW is mismanaging the situation and their financial resources.

Not being able to track/confirm payment with 100% certainty -- which is kind of table-stakes when you're providing a service like water, and/or getting paid online -- is 100% unacceptable. This "maybe you paid, we aren't sure so we're sending a bill on a different platform which while wrong might become a collection notice" is 100% bullshit. This isn't selling quilts on Etsy, we're a major metropolitan city and this is water delivery.

The way this was written, it seems like the city accepted payment and then is telling them they didn't. Either way, I disagree with your premise that it's up to each of double check our transactions to make sure DPW is doing what they claim to be doing when they accept payment.

smoovgee t1_j0bardd wrote on December 15, 2022 at 12:07 PM

>it's NOT the citizen's job to balance their checkbook to make sure DPW is doing their job.

No but everyone should balance their checkbooks to make sure expected bills are taken out. To ensure they don't go into the negative. And to make sure their responsibility are being taken care of.

>Most of those who pay online don't use a checking account (WARNING: DON'T GIVE ANY COMPANY DIRECT ACCESS TO ANY BANK ACCOUNT) but go on a credit card. It sure sounds like he/she/they are doing their part correctly.

So. This is dumb. Paying any Bmore City bill with a CC costs more. Not only with whatever interest rate you have but. Let's say you pay off your bill every month. Baltimore City CHARGES the payee to use a CC. Using a checking or savings account is free. The routing and account numbers are not saved on their website. You have to input the information each time you pay. Your cookies or whatever may save the digits but the website itself does not.

>The city accepting payment and is all the proof they (OP) needs. Unless, as the OP suggests, the DPW is mismanaging the situation and their financial resources.

This is also foolish. Every time you pay a governmental bill or utility, you get a reference number to track that specific transaction. For the city, millions of transactions occur monthly. As well, things happen. You put the wrong acct number, wrong address or whatever, you have proof of the attempt. Or get, your phone died or computer crashed or whatever, you have an identifier.

>way, I disagree with your premise that it's up to each of double check our transactions to make sure DPW

It's not just DPW. Every one should check ALL transactions. I pay property taxes online. I'm not just hitting send and going about my day.

Water bill, bge, tickets and property taxes, I pay by check/ACH and I check my account the day it's supposed to hit make sure it does. It always has.

I also check my accounts routinely because I like the peace of mind of knowing how much I got in the bank, that X bill was paid. It's more than DPW.

Op never checked apparently no now, they have to untangle this.

This isn't DPW issue cuz they don't take the payment. The City does. And just like with issuing tickets, the finance department of Baltimore City is really efficient.

Also. When you don't pay your bill. It gets bigger. The amount carries over. So op never looked at the bill? Never checked the amount? If they did, then there's an issue, probably user error. If so, those 3 payments can be tracked. How? The reference number.

The city is inefficient and fails in a lot of ways. This is not an e ample of that.

[deleted] t1_j0blcoc wrote on December 15, 2022 at 1:46 PM

[deleted]

The_Waxies_Dargle t1_j0blgfn wrote on December 15, 2022 at 1:46 PM

Meh.

Being financially cognizant of your situation is always a good idea. But I'm not suggesting it isn't, nor does that does not ameliorate the fact that the OP is doing everything correctly and the city is fucking up their bill.

smoovgee t1_j0bn0vm wrote on December 15, 2022 at 1:59 PM

So. This is my thing. I think op did not do everything correct. Why? Cuz they are surprised and unsure as to why they are now getting notification.

My contention was/is: if you were checking your banking accounts routinely, you'd know that specific bill wasn't getting paid.

Let's say you aren't routinely checking your acct, which is stupid as fuck but a lot of people do not. Then when you get a water bill, your eyes generally go right to amount owed. In that box, right above amount owed, is previous amount owed. The middle of the paper, is a graph which shows you how much water was used.

But let's say you are like me. The water bill is on my desk, unopened. When I have a mind, I go online and pay the bill. The online bill also says, how much is owed, previous unpaid bill, and the last time paid.

The amount owed, previous and current cannot be missed.

Even if you're on auto pay. Which, I refuse to do with any utility but to each their own, you'll be notification of how much you owe, when it'll be taken out and a breakdown of the bill.

So, allll that to say.

Op isn't doing everything correctly. To me, they fucked up somewhere and want to blame DPW. Nah, that's on you.

Simply monitoring your bank accounts will solve this solution.

The city will put a lien on for water bills. That's not something any owner should play with.

>OP is doing everything correctly and the city is fucking up their bill.

This is incorrect. It's the inverse.

The_Waxies_Dargle t1_j0btehy wrote on December 15, 2022 at 2:46 PM

> My contention was/is: if you were checking your banking accounts routinely, you'd know that specific bill wasn't getting paid.

Unless they have been being charged the whole time. Given that their bill doesn't seem to have grown relative to the others they just paid, I'm guessing they were being charged.

Regardless, the city offered a means to a payment, the resident accepted and completed it. Offer then acceptance. This is all that's needed for most contracts.