Morganton billing errors frustrate customers

When James Langrall checked his Morganton utility bill due in July, he noticed a late fee charge for a bill he had mailed a check for. He assumed the check hadn’t arrived in time, went to city hall, where staff said they waived the late fee, and went about his week.

However, not only was the late fee still attached the next month, but the entire previous month appeared unpaid and added to his current bill.

“That was the first time I thought, ‘Wow, I’m really glad I check this stuff,’” Langrall said, explaining that he works in home health, caring for the elderly, and he often sees family members coming by to bring groceries and help pay bills.

“In that scenario, I wonder if someone would see their aging parent with some cognitive issues and see the past due amount and assume there was some error made … and just send out a payment for 185 extra dollars.”

Once again, Langrall went to city hall, where he said multiple other customers were there for similar issues. They removed the extra charges and he paid his bill.

Since then, the late fee has persisted on each bill as a past-due amount, despite on-time payment — often in-person — and promises from staff that the charge was waived.

“I have tried calling them at a few different numbers on their website, and then also on the bill,” Langrall said, “but I haven’t been able to get anybody on the phone. So, going in person has seemed to be the only way.”

Posts on social media echoed the concerns, with several people complaining that their electric bill has a recurring late fee despite on-time payment, and sometimes nearly doubles with accidental charges.

Both the City and the complainants say the issue seemed to begin earlier this year when Morganton implemented its new software.

Finance Director Jessie Parris said that pending payments made in the old system — which the City started using more than two decades ago — weren’t recognized in the new system.

Although she explained that staff credited and waived related fees, Parris said the City doesn’t track customer complaints “as we address numerous concerns relating to a variety of city functions daily.”

“There are also normal instances of late fees stemming from the normal course of business on the customer’s side,” Parris said. “Namely, we still have many customers who will not acknowledge the change in their account number, which is causing a higher number of misapplied payments.”

As for concerns that some customers may miss excess charges and overpay, Parris explained that if a customer pays before a bill is corrected, they receive a credit that applies to their next billing cycle. Customers can also request a refund.

If an incorrect bill is not already paid, the bill is corrected and the customer pays the corrected version.

“Any issue a customer has concerning their bill can be done in person, by phone, or by email at any time,” Parris said. The best email is businessoffice@morgantonnc.gov.

According to Langrall and those discussing the topic online, they’ve struggled to reach the City by telephone to question their bill, often not getting an answer, and subsequently having to go inside to deal with the issue.

The Paper called the Billing Questions phone number listed on the latest utility service statement three times over the week following Oct. 25:

• Tuesday just after 11 a.m.: Customer service answered long enough to say, “City office, please hold,” before putting the call on hold for about 10 minutes. They eventually answered.
• Thursday, just after 9:30 a.m.: Customer service answered almost immediately.
• Thursday, around 12:25 p.m.: On hold for 4½ minutes before a representative answered. When asked about a representative that could help with a bill, she transferred the call to another line that went to voicemail.

“City staff was prepared for an ongoing transition period as this was a massive system conversion,” Parris explained. “Transitioning over 20 years of data and processes is no small task. We continue to partner with Tyler (Technologies) to ensure our customer service representatives continue to grow in their knowledge of the product, and address and eliminate any customer issues that may arise. We appreciate our customers’ patience through this process and hope they can utilize the new Customer Portal that provides easier access to their account and bill information than previously available.”

However, according to Langrall, he’s had issues with the online portal as well.

“I’ve noticed each time (I go pay), other people in the line saying that their bill is wrong,” Langrall said. “Furthermore, the clerk themselves will say, ‘Yeah, everybody’s wrong.’ They probably are doing something to remedy the issue. I just wanted to say something in case they think they are, but they’re not doing enough.”