Municipality to take legal action against businesses in arrears

POLOKWANE – The Polokwane Municipality is to intensify credit control and debt collection for businesses in arrears with their utility bills.

Debt collectors were instructed to commence with legal action against businesses whose payments of municipal services were in arrears.

Businesses owed the municipality R146 million at the end of January this year. According to a report tabled before council at the end of February, specifications for the appointment of a service provider to enforce credit control in the way of termination and restriction of services, were at an advanced stage.

The municipal debt book stood at R608 million at the end of January, R27 million of which was owed by government and R356 million by individuals.

So far a total amount of R380 million was handed over to debt collectors and in January some R5,7 million was collected. The hand overs constituted 22 053 accounts, 3 959 of which could not be traced.

These accounts included Mankweng and Sebayeng accounts in arrears by 90 days and over, which were also handed over to debt collectors. Legal action would be instituted on 411 accounts.

The top 100 defaulters owed the municipality a total of R105 million. According to the report, accounts were back-charged due to incorrect readings and some consumers disputed the accounts. An incentive scheme was being considered to meet the consumers halfway and mitigate the increasing municipal debt book.

A new meter reader was appointed by the municipality on January 1 as the previous reader’s contract expired on December 31.

Readings for January would be estimated as, according to the mayoral committee’s report to council, consumers had to be billed and “as with any new beginning, there is a learning curve and it is therefore not fair to expect from the new service provider to know within a month the areas and location of thousands of meters”.