When a Chicago property owner checked his bimonthly water bill in May, he discovered something unusual: an amount due of more than $35,000, nearly 100 times the amount he usually paid.
He got in contact with the city, and expected the resolution to take months. With the help of NBC 5 Responds the issue was resolved within days.
Enrique Espinosa likes to keep to himself, spending a lot of time at home – a three-flat building in northern Chicago that he also rents out to others.
Since he bought the building in 2014, he’s never had a problem with his bimonthly water bill.
“It varies, but it’s never been over $381," Espinosa said.
Imagine his surprise when he received a water bill back in May for nearly 100 times his typical bill – a whopping $35,000.
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“There had to be an error,” Espinosa said. “I went to check the meter, found that what the meter said was far lower, like 3,000 points lower than what the Finance Department was claiming.”
Espinosa contacted the city immediately – but he couldn’t get anywhere. Instead of a resolution, he was forced to set up a payment plan.
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“We didn’t have a choice in the matter,” he said. “We either pay or else. That’s not a place where I wanted to be in, for my family to be in.”
Sarah Moskowitz, the executive director at Chicago’s Citizens Utility Board, says Espinosa’s “unfortunate” situation is not uncommon. Around half the calls that come into the CUB’s hotline, she says, are related to skyrocketing bills.
“It becomes this war of attrition," Moskowitz said. “People finally just get beaten down, like, ‘fine, I’m just going to pay it, I don’t see a way out.’”
If Espinosa refused to set up a plan with the city, he could’ve faced a slew of consequences including debt referral, wage garnishment and more.
“They could come after us severely,” he said. “I’m disabled, so it’s not like we have a lot of income to pay for a bill like this... This is obviously an error – what do I do?”
So, Espinosa reached out to NBC 5 Responds.
“I’ve always seen how well it works,” he said. “I said, ‘well, let’s give it a try. I’ve seen what it does for others.”
Our team reached out to the Finance Department. Two days later, Espinosa got a call. The department had reviewed the charges and found its initial reading to be incorrect.
“I was in shock,” Espinosa said. “The $35,000 bill was a shock, but the problem was fixed in weeks – that was even more shocking.”
Espinosa’s bill wasn’t a stand-alone case. In just the past year, NBC 5 Responds has fielded more than a dozen viewer complaints about surging water bills in Chicago – ranging anywhere from a couple hundred dollars to $130,000 in one billing cycle.
For people receiving unusually high water bills with seemingly no explanation, the Finance Department says the following:
“If a customer has a question or concern about their bill, they should call our customer service team at the following number: 312-744-4426. The customer can also request the Department of Water Management investigate a potential outdoor leak, if their own property search does not reveal any visible source or driver of an increased water bill. They can make this request by calling 311. If the customer is not satisfied with a resolution received, they can contact the customer service team, again, and request to speak with a supervisor.”
You can also call the Citizens Utility Board’s consumer hotline at 1-800-669-5556.
“We don’t help with all industries, but we can often direct you to the agency or resource that can help with that stuff,” Moskowitz said.
And if that doesn’t work, Espinosa has a suggestion.
“Channel 5 Responds, it works,” he said.
