Billing Information
ONLINE ACCOUNTS
HOME OWNERS: You can review your account history online and pay by credit or debit card. Go to ONLINE ACCOUNT to set up your account.
RENTERS: You can pay your bill online, but unfortunately cannot set up an account
(the system only allows owners to do so at this time) Go to the ONLINE ACCOUNT
and select QUICK PAY to pay your current bill. DO NOT put the “R” at the end of the account number.
BILLING SCHEDULE
Sewer bills are sent four (4) times per year. Sent the first week of the month they are due 30 days from the bill date.
Please Note: Quarterly Sewer Bills are not for current usage. Sewer bills are based on water usage, and the Sewer Commission receives the water readings from the water departments after they have completed their quarterly bills. Please refer to the chart below to see the time periods each sewer bill encompasses.
SENT |
DUE |
Usage |
January |
February |
Central & Village Water Customers - July of Previous Year to October of Previous Year
|
April | May | Central & Village Water Customers - October of Previous Year to the first week of January
|
July | August | Central & Village Water Customers - January to April
|
October | November |
Central & Village Water Customers - April to July
|
Please Note: |
Final bills are ALWAYS more than regular bills as they usually cover more than the 3 months of usage. |
FORM OF PAYMENT
Types of Payment that can be accepted at the Office: Personal Checks, Money Orders, Bank Checks and Cash. CREDIT/DEBIT CARDS CANNOT BE PROCESSED AT THE OFFICE.
Debit and Credit Cards can be used to pay bills ONLINE ONLY - We CANNOT accept them at our office. PLEASE NOTE: The fee for using the online service is $3.95 per transactions or 3% of the total bill (whichever is larger). This fee DOES NOT go to the Sewer Commission.
ACH: We also offer the ACH (automatic) payment option that has no fees. Please review the ACH LETTER and fill out the ACH SIGN UP FORM and send the form WITH A VOIDED CHECK (proof of correct account # and name) to our office and we will sign you up. You will still receive a paper bill to know how much will be taken out of your account, and the amount will be drawn on the due date (one month later). If there are any delays in withdrawing the amount due to errors or computer malfunctions on the Sewer Commission’s part there are NO LATE FEES, but if there is a denial of funds from your bank, late fees and check return fees will apply.
If you wish for it to begin in the current quarter the ACH FORM MUST BE RECEIVED BY THE OFFICE NO LATER THAN TWO WEEKS PRIOR TO THE DUE DATE. If the form is received after that date, ACH will begin the NEXT quarter and you should pay your current bill as usual.
E-CHECKS - E-Checks take the money directly from your account on demand. There is flat fee of $1.50 per transaction per account. To access this option use the drop down menu of payment options on the payment screen.
INFORMATION ABOUT YOUR BILL
What is the "RENT" charge? The rent charge is the quarterly charge for being hooked up to the sewer. It is the base charge like any other utility charges besides usage, but the NH State Statutes define it as RENT, and therefore that is put on the sewer bills. You are NOT renting any equipment.
Residential: $37
Commercial: $60
Industrial: $93
USAGE CHARGES
$6.80 per thousand gallons water used (ex. 10,000 gallons usage = $68.00)
PROPERTY OWNERS WITH WELLS
Residences with wells are charged 20,000 per quarter unless owners put in a well meter (at their expense). Readings are given to the Sewer Commission by the home owner quarterly. If you believe that you do not use 20,000 gallons, but do not want to install a meter on your well you can request a gallonage reduction from the Sewer Commissioners.
HOWEVER, the Commissioners will most likely only approve applications for reduction if you are over 55 and/or 2 or less residents live at the home at all times. Fill out the Well - Gallon Reduction Request Form and send to Commissioner for Review.
POLICIES
Failure to receive a bill does not exempt customer from late fee.
Accounts with checks returned for insufficient funds will incur a $25 fee. If there are two checks returned within one billing year, the Sewer Commission will no longer accept personal checks for payment.
At the end of each CALENDAR year, any unpaid balances on accounts are turned over to the Hooksett Tax Collector and will be added to the property tax bill.
UNPAID BALANCES ARE NOT CARRIED FORWARD AND WILL NOT SHOW ON THE FOLLOWING YEAR'S BILL.
A properly installed and inspected deduct meter must be in place to receive any credits for outside watering (see deduct meters).
Final Bills
If the property is to be sold, please make sure you contact the Hooksett Sewer Commission and the water department that services your property (if applicable). Any unpaid sewer bills STAY WITH THE PROPERTY, not the former owner, and to ensure that new owners are not burdened with bills that are not their own, a final bill must be ordered. Both Central Hooksett and Village Water District personnel will inform the Sewer Department of a final reading. MANCHESTER WATER DOES NOT INFORM US WHEN PROPERTY CHANGES HANDS. Please make sure your real estate agent and/or title company calls for a final bill.
Information on Delinquent Sewer Accounts
The Tax Collector's Office is the collection agency for the Delinquent Sewer Accounts. Once the accounts are transferred to the Tax Collector's Office for collection, the account must be paid at the Tax Office, 35 Main St., Hooksett, NH 03106.
Every year, in November, the Hooksett Sewer Commission notifies, by mail, all Sewer Customers who have any outstanding amounts owed on their account. Customers are given until the third week of December to pay the amounts due for that year.
The Sewer Commission then generates a warrant list of delinquent accounts. After approval from the Board of Sewer Commissioners, this warrant list is then sent to the Hooksett Tax Collector per RSA 149-I:11 Liens and Collection of Sewer Charges. The list is usually given to the Tax Collector by the second week of January. AFTER DECEMBER, ANY MONIES SENT TO THE SEWER COMMISSION OFFICE WILL BE CREDITED TO CURRENT SEWER BILLS.
Change of Address
If you move, but still own the property, you MUST contact the Hooksett Sewer Department and provide a forwarding address to ensure your bill is received in a timely manner. No late fee will be waived due to delays in forwarding mail. If you reside elsewhere part of the year you must also contact the Sewer Office when you leave and give the correct address to forward mail to, and contact the office again when you return to town. Again, late fees WILL NOT be waived if no notice is given.
Tenant Bills
Owners of rental properties must receive a copy of their sewer bills, even if their tenants pay utilities. This ensures that the owner knows payments are being made, and if any unpaid balances are going to be turned over to the Tax Collector. Copies of bills can be sent to tenants for them to pay. Final bills should be created for tenants when they vacate the property. This ensures that these tenants pay for all of their usage until they move out, and new tenants start with usage that is only theirs. Please contact both water and sewer for final bills when a move out date is known.
Running/Leaky Toilets
A leaking toilet tank can waste up to 200 gallons of water per day. A total of 6,000 gallons per month or 72,000 per year. You can see and hear some leaks, but many are silent and hard to find. A bad flapper valve, flapper valve seat, a bad ballcock valve, an improperly positioned floating arm, or a defective overflow tube can cause them. At bedtime, when the toilet is not expected to be used for several hours, drop a leak detection dye tablet or 12 drops of food coloring into the top tank. If there is dye in the bowl, within 20 minutes, within 1 hour, or in the morning you have a leak. The sooner the dye appears, the larger the leak.