From dry taps to relocated service
NWC addresses Manchester family’s two-year ordeal
Dear Claudienne,
I live in Manchester and got a connection from National Water Commission in 2019. Since being connected there has been disruption in the service on more than one occasion, but the connection would always be restored. However, from November 2022 I was without water for a long period. When I contacted the NWC office in Mandeville to report the issue and to request trucked water, the customer care department would usually ask me if I was the only person/household in the area without the supply.
I would also at times go online to https://www.nwcjamaica.com/ and use the online chat to make the request. When I used this medium, a follow-up call would be placed to NWC to check up on the status of delivery. I would always be told that they are not seeing a request. I would then phone and make a new request.
On January 20, 2023 I made an online request to NWC for a relocation of the service. The NWC representative assured me that the company would visit my new location and that I would be contacted. When I visited the Mandeville office on February 13, 2023 to check up on the status of my request, I was told that there was no request on my account. At the office I again made a request for the service to be relocated, and the customer service agent told me that an inspection would be done and that they would call and inform me of the cost to relocate the service. She also assured me that she would work on having water trucked to me. However, they never called me and no trucked water was ever delivered.
At the same time the NWC continued to send me monthly bills. I had also, by this time, depleted my resources by trucking water independently, up to two or three times per month. To date, no trucked water has been delivered and NWC has not called to provide an update on the situation nor to advise me of the cost to relocate the water supply. I have made numerous calls to the head office to report the situation but calls to their corporate number 876-929-5430 always went to voicemail.
Eventually, a supervisor from the Mandeville office visited the site and confirmed that the relocation could be done. However, I was not told how much the relocation would cost and when it would be done.
My household is a family of four, two of which are children below the age of four. I have not been able to do my own laundry at my home so I have to make a reservation to do it at my in-laws or my parents’ house since November 2022. It has been a rough ride so I would appreciate your assistance to have the service relocated.
MT
Dear MT,
Tell Claudienne has been in contact with National Water Commission and notes that they have relocated the water supply to your new location.
We wish you all the best.
Have a problem with a store, utility, a company? Telephone 876-936-9436 or Cell/Whatsap # 876-484-1349 or write to: Tell Claudienne c/o Sunday Finance, Jamaica Observer, 40-42 1/2 Beechwood Avenue, Kingston 5; or e-mail: edwardsc@jamaicaobserver.com. Please include a contact phone number.