New Residential Accounts
Download the Residential Application prior to your office visit. Click here to download.
Requirements
New residential service may be applied for at our office, located at 300 N. Nashville Ave., Sheffield.
Deposit Policy
Sheffield City Ordinance requires a deposit for each account. The deposit is held as security for the utility bill payment. This deposit cannot be used to pay a bill unless the account is going to be closed.
If an account is closed, the deposit will be credited toward the final bill. Any remaining money will be refunded to the Customer. Deposit transfers from one Customer to another are not allowed.
Transferring Services
Transfers may occur only within the Sheffield Utilities service area, and a service charge will be added to the first bill at the new address. If payments are kept current, with no collection activity in the past twelve months, residential service may be transferred without an additional deposit. However, if payments are not kept current and collection activity has occurred, a customer may transfer the service by paying an additional deposit and the current bill in full. City ordinances do impose some limitations on transfers, service restorations and new service.
Upon individual request and review, we will allow service to be active at both addresses for a period of 10 days for the convenience of moving and clean up.
Service Charges
Under city ordinance, charges are made for routine and special services to recover a portion of the expense of setting up and handling new accounts. These charges are made so customers receiving the services pay for them instead of the costs being included in the base rates.
Service charges are imposed for the following: new and/or first time service; transfer of existing service; accelerated service connection; reconnection charges for services interrupted for nonpayment; trips to a service address to collect payment; handling of returned checks; trips to a service address to cut on or cut off a utility at a customer's request; trips to reread inaccessible meters or rereads at a customer's request where the reading is found to be correct; and trips to test meters at a customer's request where the meter accuracy is found to be correct.
Billing & Collections
Meters are read once a month. The bill is then mailed the next business day after the read date with payment due on a fixed date thereafter, making the net amount due approximately 12 to 16 days after the meter is read.
The billing and collection procedures of Sheffield Utilities are established under guidelines mandated by a federal court order for the Northern District of Alabama of 1976. The court order prohibits Sheffield Utilities from offering special treatment for individuals or groups desiring exceptions from the court-approved procedures.