/ 4 February 2011

Billing woes: The waiting game

I was driven to apply for a prepaid meter from City Power after my electricity bill went through the roof, and stayed there. I figured it would be good to be rid of them — no more would I suffer at the hands of the estimators.

After countless calls to the Johannesburg hotline — some of which were answered, many not — I trekked south to Santarama Miniland, where a giant statue of Jan van Reinbeck peers over the fence, to the nearby municipal offices.

The security guard smiles as he ushers the visitors in to the office in sets of three or four. He often estimates the length of time you’ll be waiting — never less than an hour, usually two — and always mentions that the office opens at 7.30am.

Inside the waiting room, ratepayers display what I imagine to be the fraternal companionship of prisoners:

“What are you in for?”

“They’re estimating my bill. You?”

In the same boat
You’re all in the same boat — a queue and City Power being the great levellers. People commiserate, compare notes and offer one another advice.

Some come prepared with folders and sheaves of old bills. Others bring photographs of their meter readings, hoping to show officials that there is no way their bills can be that high. The young, the elderly, able-bodied and sick — all must pass through here.

In my many visits to the office there have never been more than two or three people on duty. Phones ring on empty desks, almost constantly. None ever seem to be answered, as though the staff have become inured to the din.

Once you get to the front of the queue, however, the staff are unfailingly polite and helpful.

I thought I was to encounter one who seemed to know how to work “the system”. He logged a remark on my account, saying it seemed a little high. While steadfastly refusing to criticise his colleagues in the meter-installation department, he did acknowledge there was a backlog.

Six months later, I’m still waiting …