Meter Change Has Fort Mill Residents Confused By High Water Bills

In Fort Mill, South Carolina, local residents are experiencing confusion and frustration due to sky-high water bills that have seemingly resulted from recent changes to their water meters. A specific example is the Sheehan family, residing in the Baxter neighborhood of Fort Mill, who expressed utter surprise at their exorbitant July water bill from York County Sewer & Water.

The Shocking Rise in Water Bills

“The amount was staggering to me,” said Ali Sheehan, adding that their household’s water usage has not increased. Even Benji Sheehan commented, “Our family of four didn’t suddenly expand into a family of seven,” highlighting their bewilderment at the sudden spike in their bills. The Sheehan family, which has been living in Baxter for nearly a year, reported that their usual water bill rounds up to approximately $30.

However, an unexpected surprise came earlier this summer when they found that the county had changed their meter, along with those of many others in their neighborhood. The Sheehans, like their neighbor Brian Barger, were left feeling puzzled and anxious.

Residents Grapple with Exorbitant Bills and Unresponsive Authorities

Upon receiving a $300 water bill for the previous month, a striking sum considering his usual bill accounts for roughly a third of this amount, Brian Barger pressed the county officials for a water usage report. He discovered that his residence had consumed a shocking 2,500 gallons of water within a 24-hour period. Unfortunately, he was unable to procure detailed information for some other days in that same month.

“They won’t they won’t address it. They’ll just say you need to get a plumber,” Barger voiced his frustration at the county’s lack of response. The Sheehan family received a similarly unhelpful reply when they sought clarification about their bill. “It seemed like the default response was, ‘You must have a leak. If you hire a plumber or irrigation specialist to do the repair or come back with your bill, and then we can talk about it,” according to Ali Sheehan.

County Reverts Pricing But Confusion Still Remains

Following numerous attempts to understand and dispute their bill, the Sheehan family reported that the county eventually decided to reduce its price from an exorbitant $600 to a more acceptable $167. Despite this, the initially intimidating figure still left a lasting impression and ongoing unease among residents.

A statement from York County Water and Sewer addressing these concerns read: “This is not a Baxter-wide or County wide issue regarding high usage billing. Any issue related to a customer’s water usage/high bill is better evaluated on an individual basis. York County is currently in the process of replacing all meters in the York County service areas. These new meters are yielding more accurate water usage readings; potentially resulting in higher bills for some customers.”

Whether this was simply a result of more accurate meter readings or a fault in the system is still up in the air. Meanwhile, the residents of Fort Mill are left grappling with high water bills, and many like the Sheehans and Barger continue to seek answers and a more proportionate water usage charging system.