When he called the metro for help with his prepaid electricity meter, Geduld Extension resident Ian Nieman thought his prepaid meter problem will be solved.
“However, the metro failed to deliver proper service,” he says.
He reported his faulty prepaid meter in June after he discovered he cannot enter the new token.
Instead of fixing the meter, the metro bypassed the meter to normal electricity usage.
“The technician informed me the meter is in ‘tamper mode’.
“At first I was under the impression he meant I tampered with the meter, but he explained it is just a term they use,” says Nieman
To Nieman’s surprise the man explained he will bypass the meter so Nieman could have electricity and will return to fix the problem.
The technician never returned.
The situation left Nieman curious on who will be responsible for paying the account.
He continuously reported the faulty meter and was informed they will look into the matter.
Eventually a technician arrived in August and explained to Nieman he will fix the problem in no time as he just needs a code from the office.
But, he too, promised to return and never did.
Still the Niemans were using normal electricity and hoped they will not be held responsible for the account of which they had no account number or records.
They reported the faulty meter nine times and twice visited the metro offices, but to no avail.
Nieman was also given the same reference number after each phone call.
He says it was only after he asked the Addie for help on Thursday that the metro had sent a technician to change his electricity back to its former prepaid status.
“They fixed the meter and punched in all the free units as well as the units I previously bought,” he says.
The metro failed to comment at the time of publishing.