New Jersey Administrative Code › Title 14 - PUBLIC UTILITIES › Chapter 3 - ALL UTILITIES › Subchapter 7 - BILLS AND PAYMENTS FOR SERVICE › Section 14:3-7.8 - Diversion of service

Current through Register Vol. 56, No. 14, July 15, 2024
(a) The following
				words and terms, when used in this section, shall have the following meanings
				unless the context clearly indicates otherwise:
"Beneficiary" is the person, corporation or other entity
				  financially benefiting from the service.
"Diversion" is an unauthorized connection to pipes and/or
				  wiring by which utility service registers on the tenant customer's meter
				  although such service is being used by other than the tenant-customer of record
				  without his or her knowledge or cooperation. The unauthorized connection must
				  not be apparent from the premises.
"Landlord" means those persons, corporations or other
				  entities who currently lease residential dwellings, as well as condominium
				  associations or other owners' associations in instances where occupants own
				  their premises in a multi-family building.
"Premises" are those areas of the residence where service
				  outlets are visible and under the direct control of the tenant-customer of
				  record.
"Tenant-customer" is a residential customer of record at the
				  time of the complaint who rents a dwelling unit in a multi-family building or
				  owns a condominium.
(b)
				Each electric, gas, water and/or wastewater utility shall include in its tariff
				provisions ensuring that tenant-customers shall not be required to pay for
				service supplied outside their premises without the tenant-customers'
				consent.
(c) Each electric, gas,
				water and/or wastewater utility shall notify tenant-customers who apply for
				service that if the utility's tariff provides for billing through one meter for
				the tenant-customers' own usage and for service diverted outside the
				tenant-customers' premises, the tenant-customers may not be required to pay for
				such diverted service absent their consent or cooperation for such
				service.
(d) Each utility shall
				investigate alleged diversions as follows:
1.
				When a tenant-customer alleges in good faith that the level of consumption
				reflected in his or her utility bill is unexplainably high, the tenant-customer
				may request the utility supplying gas, electricity, water and/or wastewater
				service to conduct a diversion investigation at no cost to the
				customer;
2. Such request shall be
				made in writing by the tenant-customer by completing and returning to the
				utility a diversion investigation application provided by the
				utility;
3. The application shall
				state that, if the tenant-customer has made one or more previous diversion
				complaints in the previous 12-month period, which failed to uncover a diversion
				of utility service, the utility may bill the customer for the cost of the
				second and subsequent investigations;
4. The utility shall investigate the alleged
				diversion within two months of the receipt of the investigation request. Each
				diversion investigation shall include a meter test conducted in accordance with
				14:3-4.4;
5. The utility shall have the right of
				reasonable access pursuant to
				14:3-3.6. For purposes of utility
				access, the alleged diversion is presumed to constitute a hazardous condition
				until the utility investigates;
6.
				If, as a result of such investigation, the utility determines that the service
				from the pipes and/or wires serving the tenant-customer has been diverted, the
				utility shall notify the landlord or his or her agent and instruct him or her
				to correct the diversion within 30 days through rewiring or repiping. However,
				this provision shall in no way prohibit a utility from disconnecting service if
				the utility determines that an unsafe condition exists;
7. If a diversion is found, the utility shall
				attempt to determine the identity of the beneficiary;
8. A tenant-customer seeking relief shall be
				responsible for furnishing to the utility the identity and address of the
				landlord or agent, and of the beneficiary, if known;
9. Additionally, the tenant-customer shall
				provide any other information, which may assist the utility in its
				investigation;
10. The utility
				shall furnish to the tenant-customer, the tenant-customer's landlord, and to
				the beneficiary (if different from the landlord) within 14 days of the
				investigation, a written report on the findings of the investigation. This
				report shall include information on the estimated cost of diverted service
				based upon prior use, degree day analysis, load study and/or cooling degree
				hours, whichever is appropriate;
11. If the utility locates a diversion, the
				utility shall attempt to reach an agreement with the parties involved or, in
				lieu of such agreement, proceed to the conference described in (f) below;
				and
12. If no diversion is located,
				these diversion proceedings shall end when the utility has completed and filed
				its investigation report pursuant to (j) below.