Pittsburgh Water and Sewer Insurance (Columbia: house, prices, floor)

[fleetiebelle]

I got my PWSA bill yesterday, and there was a letter inside stating that from now on, $5 will be added into each month's bill to pay for sewer line insurance. There was also an opt-out form included. Anybody else get this? On one hand, it sounds like a good idea, but one the other, that it's something you have to opt-out of rather than opt-into feels kind of shady.

[onwardandupward]

I got the same thing - I'm hoping someone can chime in and explain it.

[trotter_rej]

There is an announcement about it in the PWSA December newsletter, so it appears to be legitimate. http://www.pgh2o.com/docs/newsletter...Newsletter.pdf

[Tinare]

Yeah that surprised me as well. Though, I've been meaning to look into a plan for that (I've received some offers from Columbia Gas and other vendors in the past) so I guess it's a good thing for me. $5/mo. for coverage of the outdoor sewer and water lines is, I think, better than any other offer I've seen, does anyone know if we can do better?

[Morningsider]

Pittsburgh City Councilman Dowd explained this recently at a Morningside Area Citizens Council meeting. The infrastructure in this city is old and crumbling, and sewer line failure is very common. It can cost $10,000-$20,000 to replace the line from your house to the main and many Pittsburghers have a difficult time coming up with that kind of money on short notice. This program means that PWSA customers will no longer have to pay that expense if they are in the program.

It started as an opt-in program, but hardly anyone did so since no one seems to actually read their bill. So in order for the program to pay for itself PWSA had to make it opt-out.

[fleetiebelle]

Originally Posted by Tinare

Yeah that surprised me as well. Though, I've been meaning to look into a plan for that (I've received some offers from Columbia Gas and other vendors in the past) so I guess it's a good thing for me. $5/mo. for coverage of the outdoor sewer and water lines is, I think, better than any other offer I've seen, does anyone know if we can do better?

That's kind of what I was wondering--is this a good price? Is this company reputable? That sort of thing.

[Johnny C]

I had to replace my sewer pipe from the downstairs toilet the whole way to the street. 2 days and $15,000 later 'til the bad stuff was flowin' downhill again.

My house was on the more expensive side because I had to dig up my concrete floor in the basement and my front yard is around 50 feet from the street.

[ki0eh]

Originally Posted by onwardandupward

I'm hoping someone can chime in and explain it.

I would call it a "rate increase" personally. Especially with what was on page 8 of the linked newsletter.

[greg42]

The lines between the street and your house that run through your yard are your responsibility, not the utility's. They are also typically exceptions to your homeowner's policy, at least the sewer line is. I remember distinctly my insurance agent explaining how anything that comes back up through the sewer line is not covered, let alone the line itself.

That may be something to clarify, if this insurance covers damage from a sewer backup as well as damage to the line itself. You can also get a quote for this kind of coverage from your homeowner's provider just to make sure that's a good deal, but 60 bucks a year is probably a good deal. Or you can opt out and take the risk.

[ditchdigger]

Originally Posted by ki0eh

I would call it a "rate increase" personally. Especially with what was on page 8 of the linked newsletter.

It seems to me that what you read on page 8 had to do with preventing more of what you saw on pages 3-7. The insurance program has to do with property owner's possible expenses for their connections to the city's mains. That's an entirely different thing.

I'd be interested in knowing how claims are to be administered.

You're all familiar with companies that advertise their "free" sewer camera services. A plumber friend of mine is of the opinion that almost any sewer that's televised will show some defect sufficient to convince the homeowner that replacement is called for. (I put that in italics because that's not the same thing as a sewer that actually requires immediate replacement.)

If a plumber convinces a homeowner to replace a sewer, does somebody detremine in advance whether the claim is valid or not? Can the insurer deny the claim, leaving the homeowner on the hook for the repair? If there's no prior oversight by the insurer, will they be taken to the cleaners by unscrupulous plumbers who convince homeowners that they may as well replace their sewers, since it's essentially "free" to them? What's to keep prices for repair jobs on par with similar repairs done in localities outside the city?

Lots of questions....

...but 60 bucks a year is probably a good deal....

If you figure that it'll take you 200 years to pay premiums equal to one $12,000 repair, yeah, it is a good deal...