PhatBottomGirly
04-22-2005, 10:29 PM
A Mechanicville woman got a big surprise in her kitchen this week. She says the local meter reader just let himself in. The company says there's nothing wrong with that. But others, including the local police chief say the utility company needs to re-think its policy. Christine Vlad was sitting in her pajamas in her Mechanicville home Monday about noon when she says she realized a man had entered her kitchen. He said he was with NYSEG, there to check her meter. She asked him why he was in her kitchen and he said “We do this all the time.”
The meters the New York State electric and gas reader was apparently trying to get to are located down some steep stairs in the basement. Christine says she heard no knock and certainly did not give anybody permission to come inside her house. The door was closed but unlocked. This "no knock, I'm the meter reader" policy definitely comes as a surprise to Mechanicville police. They investigated and confirmed that NYSEG was reading meters in the neighborhood. The police chief says a NYSEG official insists the company had the right to enter residences on its own in non-emergencies in order to access its equipment. There are two other factors at play here. One is common courtesy. You do not do that in this country. The second is a homeowner has the right to defend his domicile, even with deadly physical force. Meter readers could be shot dead and it probably wouldn't even be a crime. Chief Joseph Waldron feels they need to really think that policy out. I can only say NYSEG, you need to research that policy if it is such a policy. The chief says he's still wading through hundreds of public utility laws to determine whether NYSEG was out-of-bounds. If he confirms they are, the meter reader could be charged with criminal trespassing. We've placed multiple calls to NYSEG seeking comment. Those haven't been returned. In case you're wondering, another big utility in this area, Niagara Mohawk says they don't go inside residences uninvited and that almost all of their meters no longer require human reading anyway.
Last Updated: April 21, 2005 17:57:00
The meters the New York State electric and gas reader was apparently trying to get to are located down some steep stairs in the basement. Christine says she heard no knock and certainly did not give anybody permission to come inside her house. The door was closed but unlocked. This "no knock, I'm the meter reader" policy definitely comes as a surprise to Mechanicville police. They investigated and confirmed that NYSEG was reading meters in the neighborhood. The police chief says a NYSEG official insists the company had the right to enter residences on its own in non-emergencies in order to access its equipment. There are two other factors at play here. One is common courtesy. You do not do that in this country. The second is a homeowner has the right to defend his domicile, even with deadly physical force. Meter readers could be shot dead and it probably wouldn't even be a crime. Chief Joseph Waldron feels they need to really think that policy out. I can only say NYSEG, you need to research that policy if it is such a policy. The chief says he's still wading through hundreds of public utility laws to determine whether NYSEG was out-of-bounds. If he confirms they are, the meter reader could be charged with criminal trespassing. We've placed multiple calls to NYSEG seeking comment. Those haven't been returned. In case you're wondering, another big utility in this area, Niagara Mohawk says they don't go inside residences uninvited and that almost all of their meters no longer require human reading anyway.
Last Updated: April 21, 2005 17:57:00