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Prepaid smart water meters roll out from today: Five things you should know
Roll-out will commence in Cosmo City, Orlando East and West, Diepkloof and Orange Farm.
Joburg Water has urged residents to grant its workers access to their properties for purposes of pairing open meters with Customer Interface Units. Picture: Supplied
Prepaid smart meters will be rolled out in Johannesburg from Monday, 31 July.
Joburg Water recently announced plans to forge ahead with the switch from open mode to prepaid smart meters.
The water utility urged residents to grant workers access to their properties for purposes of pairing open meters with Customer Interface Units (CIUs).
According to Joburg Water, the roll-out will commence in Cosmo City, Orlando East and West, Diepkloof and Orange Farm.
The Citizen reached out to Joburg Water to get some answers to questions you may have on the meters.
Here are 5 useful things worth knowing.
ALSO READ: ‘Use water sparingly’ – Joburg Water urges residents
Why should I switch?
Customers on prepaid smart meters will pay for their individual household consumption, but those without meters will be billed for availability charges or deemed consumption, which in most cases is above their consumption and more expensive.
Qualifying residents will also be able to register for the Expanded Social Package (ESP) at the City of Johannesburg’s Department of Social Development to access benefits.
How do the new meters work?
The new prepaid smart meters would work similarly to the way prepaid electricity meters work, using a customer interface unit that is used to load the credit for the water.
Do I have to pay for the new meters?
There is no cost to customers for the installation of these new prepaid smart meters.
Who’s footing the bill for the roll-out?
Johannesburg Water is responsible for the financial costs of the roll-out.
Where can I buy vouchers?
Credit can be purchased from the following platforms:
Credit can also be purchased from the following banking apps:
- ABSA
- Nedbank
- Capitec
- Standard Bank
- FNB
More vending points can be found on the Joburg Water website.
The utility provider said customers without meters will be deemed to have refused meters, resulting in disconnection of water supply.
ALSO READ: ‘Difficult times call for drastic measures’ – These are Joburg’s rate increases for 2023
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