Customer Service Representative

Performs a broad range of customer service duties related to the billing of City water, sewer, and sanitation to include processing of customer utility payments, responding to and assisting customers with problems and routine inquiries, assisting customers over the phone, and billing related issues. Ensures customers are provided a high level of service, treated professionally, while enforcing City policies and ordinances.

Assists in the training of other employees.

• Assists citizens with routine and complex telephone inquiries regarding initiating, terminating or transferring service, billing schedules and payment due dates, tenant accounts, water leaks, and account averaging. Maintains awareness of scheduled read dates, billing, penalty, and cut-off schedule in order to provide appropriate responses to customer inquiries.
• Researches and responds to complex consumer problems such as high water bills, cut-offs, misread water meters, payment posting errors; dead meters; coordinates work with other functions to resolve problems; initiates actions to resolve problems. Generates Service Orders and Adjustments as needed to investigate or correct customer problems.
• Processes business and residential applications for new service, terminations and transfers of service. Processes payments for new water meters; initiates service orders for turn ons/offs; performs follow‑up with appropriate departments in the event of nonpayment of deposits or meter fees.
• Performs follow‑up to customer issues to ensure problem correction has occurred.
• Works with customer and upper management to help set up payment plans for consumers in situations of high bills or financial hardship.
• Processes requests for "holding" accounts from cut-off, and sets up payment agreements for utilities cut off due to non‑payment; reviews cut‑off lists on delinquent accounts; arranges for disconnection and reconnection as appropriate, utilizing electronic technology to communicate with Customer Service Field Representatives.
• Assists consumers, answers questions related to bills; coordinates with other City departments to ensure problem resolution; refers other questions to proper offices/departments; assists customers with set up ofbank draft accounts. Refers customer correspondence to Customer Service Manager for response as deemed appropriate.
• Assists in the training of other employees in the performance of customer service duties.

• Reviews and processes third party receivables paperwork; troubleshoots and corrects errors to customer accounts. Provides feedback to Customer Service Manager on repetitive errors or problems.
• Processes payments received via deposit box or by mail, opens statements, prepares payments for automated processing through check scanning technology. Responsible for daily balancing of scanned batches.
• Processes payments over the phone by debit/credit card, in person by cash, check, or debit/credit card and assists customers at payment windows; inputs account numbers and payments into computerized payment system; issues receipts. Responsible for daily balancing/reconciliation of cash receipt batches to ensure accurate posting to customer accounts.
• Operates computer cash register and associated peripheral equipment to post payments to accounts; prepares information for bank deposits; identifies payments not readable by the scanners and enters payment manually.
• Maintains integrity and security of assigned cash drawer; closes and balances drawer at close of business day. Responsible for doing cash drops throughout the day based off management directives.
• Processes requests for "holding" accounts and payment plans for utilities cut off due to non-payment; reviews cut‑off lists on delinquent accounts; arranges for disconnection and reconnection as appropriate.
• Prepares returned check customer correspondence; makes notation on customer account records; disconnects services if unpaid; reactivates accounts when paid.
• Reviews delete/final accounts with a balance due to see if there is an active account available to transfer balance due.
• Assist in collection of delinquent accounts turned over to collections.
• Follows all City policies and ordinances including, but not limited to, payment collection, fee schedules, and rate structures. Follows all internal policies with regard to procedures established for disconnects due to non-payment.

• Prepares and issues…