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Viewpoint 005
Public Utilities Scams - Beware

DO YOU USE UTILITIES IN TRINIDAD & TOBAGO?
CABLE? WATER? PHONE? ELECTRICITY?

THE BIG BUSINESS OF DISCONNECTING TO EARN MASSIVE “RECONNECTION FEES"

Following our research into the above predatory practices, it would appear that wealthy utility companies are by design keeping their customers switched off and in the dark when it comes to giving FAIR advance notice of intended disconnections so as to earn MILLIONS of DOLLARS in revenues from “reconnection fees”.

At “RECONNECTION FEES” of $500.00 for WASA, $166.75 for T&TEC, $65.00 for Direct TV, $34.50 for TSTT, and $100.00 for FLOW merely to flip a computerized switch at the latter three, it can best be described as unconscionable if allowed to continue without the relevant authority urgently mandating these companies to engage in customer care with the standard practice of mailing its consumers a FINAL NOTICE giving an average 10 days before actual disconnection. So far, only ONE utility occasionally places disconnection notices in the media, but even this is inadequate for busy but honest consumers.

WASA’S hostile crew doesn’t knock on your door, hastily proceeding to dig up, tractor on call. Your monopoly of a Telephone & Cable Company illegally demands at reconnection that you also pay your present (with FLOW bold facedly demanding even the future payment) bill even before it is due, breaching your contract with them which calls for payment on a due date. TSTT is demanding you “PAY ARREARS & PRESENT BILL WHETHER BILL WAS RECEIVED OR NOT”. Now you do the math on over 100,000 disconnections per month at $34.50 X 12 Months. Yes, MILLIONS AND MILLIONS of DOLLARS extracted from poor people not given reasonable advance notice of impending disconnection.

Further, the untrained staff at three such companies would bold-facedly tell you (now the enemy) “since YOUR late-payment caused disconnection, we cannot guarantee timely reconnection”, yet still billing for the disconnected period. Could it be by design they are refusing to mail or advertise planned disconnections?

In all civil societies where consumers are treated with respect, the mailing of a FINAL NOTICE is Standard Trading Practice for transparency, and the maintaining of good customer relations.

OUR CONSUMERS deserve no less, as they are the very engine on which these powerful, albeit insensitive utility companies revolve.

KNOW YOUR RIGHTS. BE AN EDUCATED CONSUMER!