Los Angeles couple in their 80s hit with a $9,200 water bill after a meter sat broken for 3 years. The utility says pay anyway

When she noticed that their bill from the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power (LADWP) was increasing, Howell says she thought they had a water leak, and called the utility.

It turns out there was a malfunction — but it wasn’t a leaky pipe.

‘You’re going to have to pay the bill’

Howell’s daughter told NBC4 News that LADWP said that the problem was a broken water meter.

She says that when she asked how long the meter was broken, LADWP said three years.

“You’re going to have to pay the bill,” she says the family was told by the utility.

NBC4 News reviewed documents that show LADWP’s claims that the Howells were not charged for water between February 2023 and March 2026.

Howell’s daughter was incensed that her parents should have to pay charges going back three years, and questioned why no one from LADWP had checked the meter.

LADWP’s Joseph Ramallo told NBC4 News that the utility operates about 700,000 water meters and 1.6 million electric meters, and that “meters can get stuck. It’s a very unusual circumstance.”

“In this case, it is unfortunate, however we have a responsibility to all the rest of our customers — because we’re only funded by our [...] customer rates — to collect a reasonable amount of time going back because that water was used and not paid for.”

Howell feels that LADWP should take some responsibility for the fact that the meter was broken.

“I have no problem paying the bill,” Howell told NBC4 News, “but if it was not working, somebody should have done something.”

NBC4 News reported that LADWP has now offered the Howells a long-term payment plan, and has lowered their bimonthly payment from $360 to $100.

LADWP told NBC4 News that the meter had actually been broken for more than three years, but that the utility can only go back and charge for the last three years.

What you can do if this happens to you

If you find yourself faced with an unexpected utility bill for past charges, first, contact the utility and gather information about what happened, how far back the charges date, and how the rate for the bill was calculated.