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Thread: council bylaws

  1. #1
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    council bylaws

    so today i had one of those challenging days again...i am told that i am to be charged R1200 for tampering with electricity department meters x 6 =R7200...eeiiish...so i head down to the local electricity department and request the documents required to open the bottom of the council meter so that i can replace the consumers cabling between the meter and main DB...but i am told there is no such document...so i enquire about the legal way to do it...there is no legal way to do it...acording to customers services you simply cut off the paper or seal replace the cable then advise them so that they can reseal it at some stage...so i ask then how can i be prosecuted for doing exactly that...i am told they cant...so long as i dont tamper with the top part of the meter it is no regarded as tampering...the next step was to get this in writting..yeah right nobody can give it to me in writting.

    now i am confused...because firstly they would need to prove that i actually broke the seal to start with...how do they know the seal wasnt broken already before i started working on the installation...who do i believe...the customer services people or the planning department...they dont seem to be on the same page.

    now for the second part of my problem...

    i go to customer services and fill out all the documentation to apply to move the meter...i request some advice...am told that i can just move the meter 500 mm over (you know to do things right)...but here is the catch i find that there is no slack on the cable so now the cable is too short...no problem i fill out all the correct documentation required and hand it in...i get a call from the planning person who tells my customer that what i have done is illegal... so he contacts me...this is when i am told that i am to be procecuted for tampering with the meters.

    my first question is then how was the installation passed by the council when it was installed...how come now suddenly because i have moved it...its now illegal...nothing has changed other than the location...it has been moved 500 mm to the left...i have to now pay for the all the cables to be moved to the new location and i have to supply a meter kiosk...i am set to loose around R20 000 for the relocation and an additional R7200 for tampering with the meters of a so called illegal installation...which has been functioning for years...i am starting to wonder about the ethics of the council.

    if i knew what i know now i would have spiked the cable done the joint myself...extended the cable and reconnected...then reported that there was no electricity they would have come out put the new fuses in and nobody would have been the wiser...total cost around R1000 including my labour.

    it doesnt pay to be honest.

    from now on i first exhaust all my opition then only contact the council and another thing if you deal with the council make sure you have written proof.

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    Gold Member Sparks's Avatar
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    The reason they not on the same page is probably the same one here, they do not know the by-laws themselves. A friend is in a supervisory position at the customer care centre here. I often hear what a battle it is to dig up by-laws which "someone" can recall but no-one has heard of. Due to her years of experience she gets all the crap dumped onto her lap because brain power and energy only stretch about 1" in front of their politically correct faces.

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    some other issues you need to be aware of when applying to the council for an electrical supply or changing it.

    if your account is not 100 % up to date they do not even load the application...it lies on the desk until you notify them that it is up to date.

    if you apply for any changes to the suppply..."YOU" need to keep up to date with their bylaws...because if you dont they will not notify you...it is your responsibility to keep up to date with their bylaws and if they change you have to make the changes to your installation at your own cost.

    beware of getting information from their customer services they are not resposible if the information they give you is incorrect.

    make sure you submit your plans and applications forms at least 3 months before you want the electrical supply installed or changed

    take at least a half day off work if you have any queries...the ques are long.

    you can only contact their planning departments etc between 8.30 and 9 and 3.30 and 4.00 on a land line because they are not issued with cellphones to attend to customer quesries...the fact they they use their personal cellphones during bussiness hours to keep up to date on social networks is fine but they will not take bussinss calls on personal cellphones during bussiness hours....(this was the joke of the week for me) one of my staff must tell me this they would have one of 2 options either they hand in their cellphone during working hours or if caught using it during working hours will be dismissed immediately...i dont expect them to make calls fro mthe cellphone and if they do they can claim the cost.

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    Murdock you have more patience than me. I would insisit that the person informing me of the fine do it in person.

    I would then shove that fine sideways where the sun does not shine.

    Council employees have no common sense. They cannot think logically. If the book says take a dump in the middle of the N3 at 16h00 that is what they will do.

    The only thing worse than one council employee is two.

    I applied for a 150 amp 3 phase supply two years back for a residential property where they run a creche from.

    They quoted us. The client accepted the quote. The council said you need to pay the full amount up front before we commence with the work.

    The client pays R 185 000.00 up front and is told 4 weeks later sorry we don't have sufficient power. It only took 18 months to get the R 180 000.00 back.

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    Quote Originally Posted by Greg View Post
    Murdock you have more patience than me. I would insisit that the person informing me of the fine do it in person.

    I would then shove that fine sideways where the sun does not shine.

    Council employees have no common sense. They cannot think logically. If the book says take a dump in the middle of the N3 at 16h00 that is what they will do.

    The only thing worse than one council employee is two.

    I applied for a 150 amp 3 phase supply two years back for a residential property where they run a creche from.

    They quoted us. The client accepted the quote. The council said you need to pay the full amount up front before we commence with the work.

    The client pays R 185 000.00 up front and is told 4 weeks later sorry we don't have sufficient power. It only took 18 months to get the R 180 000.00 back.
    you got to give them credit for their inovative cash injection scheme...plus they bank R5000 for their trouble and the interest being in their account for 18 months

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    i have to give some one credit for his assisitance today but i will wait till the changeover is complete before i carry on with this thread...i have lots more to say but being a public forum i will hold back until it is complete.

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    Gold Member Sparks's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Greg View Post
    If the book says take a dump in the middle of the N3 at 16h00 that is what they will do.
    More like 18H00

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    here a question...what do you think the estimate for the council to carry out the work requested could be...which involves the following

    1x 16 mm 4 core cable joint
    3 metres of 16 mm x 4core cable
    maybe a lug or 2 for the earth

    the hole is already dug for the joint...
    the draw wire is already installed 1 metre to the circuit breaker
    all the termination are done in the meter box


    the job involves isolating the installation...pulling 3 fuses on a pole so a fibreglass ladder is required (1 hour)
    cutting and preparing the cable for the joint..both sides...and supply the joint (2 hours)
    pull the cable 1.5 metre into the pipe which already has a draw wire...terminating the cable at the circuit breaker which i have already supplied and intalled and connected on the consumer side.

    lets hear what you would cost it in at worse case...and i mean worse case.

    joint kit...R250
    3 m cable...R500
    sundries...R500 just in case

    5 hours labour...@R500....R2500....5 hours because we know the council has unions etc.

    travelling from depo to site R1000 because they say they will need a 10 ton truck to do the job

    could i be safe in saying we are in for an estimate of around R 7000

    and lets hear what you estimate would be?

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    Site Caretaker Dave A's Avatar
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    I had a client who had to cough up R22k to extend an existing supply cable to the other side of the wall, an extension of about 30cm all told.

    That was over three years ago, soooo my guess wolud be...

    R35k to R40k?

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    how do they justify that kind of expense?

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