City Power has appealed to residents to give meter-readers access to their properties for meter-reading purposes.
The entity has embarked on an audit of its smart meters to improve good governance and ensure tighter internal controls. This is also part of operation clean-up which is part of the utility’s ongoing campaign to root out corruption and maladministration.
The utility’s spokesperson, Yumna Sheik, said the audit of the meters would help improve billing accuracy, identify faulty and malfunctioning meters and meters that have been tampered with.
“Revenue collection for electricity distributed is important for City Power as it ensures that the utility can fund the refurbishment of ageing electricity infrastructure and increase capacity, “she said.
The contractors will be identifiable by their branded uniforms and will be travelling in City Power branded vehicles. The contractors will carry an access card with their staff numbers, photo and the contact details of City Power hotlines.
“An improved network will result in reduced incidents of quicker turnaround times in cases of outages. City Power loses over a billion rand annually in non-technical losses, which includes illegal connections and stolen cables,” she continued.
In instances where the meter readers cannot gain access to assigned properties, they will notify the occupants of this by leaving notification behind.
“Residents are urged to phone the City Power hotline and make alternative arrangements to have their meters audited at their earliest convenience,” she further explained.
The utility has also warned that if the owner fails to make an alternative arrangement for meter reading after contractors were unable to access the property, they would disconnect the stand until access is granted.
Residents could also call City Power to verify the authenticity of the meter-readers or call the police if the identity of the meter-reader is suspect.
Credentials of contractors could be verified through their ID cards and City Power uniforms. Should residents be in doubt, they can call the Call Centre number on 0800 003 251, or 011 490 7900, 011 490 7911, 011 490 7553 to verify the identity of the meter-readers.
Details: City Power, 011 490 7553 or 0800 003 251.
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