LINCOLN PARK, Mich. (WXYZ) — James and Mika Wright say they opened their most recent water bill online and thought there had to be a mistake.
The total: $2,375.89.
"Utter and complete shock," Mika Wright said.
"I was expecting a higher bill of around $400 which is still pretty high for a family of three but I was not expecting $2,400. That's ten times our normal amount," Mika Wright said.
WATCH: Lincoln Park family hit with $2,375 water bill after city says meter gave incorrect readings for 3 years
The Lincoln Park couple says they contacted the city and eventually went to City Hall looking for answers. That's when they say they learned their water bills had been based on estimated readings for 14 billing cycles going back to 2023.
A new meter was installed at their home in June. The city says that allowed it to get an actual reading, which showed significantly more water had been used than the previous estimates reflected.
"The way she had explained it was that our bill was off for the last three years for 14 cycles of our billing, our meter was bad. It was just running an estimated read instead of an actual read, which, we didn't know at all," Mika Wright said.
The city tells 7 News Detroit the meter did not malfunction. Instead, the city says the bills had been estimated and the actual reading was verified after the old meter was replaced.
The city initially billed the Wrights $2,375.89. But the city says that first bill was automatically calculated using current water rates. After reviewing the account, the city re-ran the numbers using the rates that were in effect during the three-year period. That brought the bill down to $1,791.37.
The Wrights say they've now signed up for a 12-month payment plan — about $149 a month — on top of their regular water bills, which they receive every three months.
"That is still something we are going to struggle to afford I mean like she said, we're already having to live paycheck to paycheck," James Wright said.
The Wrights aren't the only residents on their street concerned about high water bills. One couple said where their bill was normally $300, they received a bill for $900.
Ben Miller, a disabled veteran who says he loves calling Lincoln Park home, says his water bill is now adding to financial pressure.
"It's harsh, it's hard," Miller said.
These concerns come as Lincoln Park residents are already facing higher water rates. The city has approved increases of up to 28 percent as it works to address problems with the water system, including significant water loss.
The city acknowledges there have also been ongoing problems with its metering system. The city says some meters have stopped registering usage while others have resulted in estimated readings. It also says replacement meters have frequently been on backorder, limiting how quickly it could replace them.
The city says that's one reason it's now in the process of upgrading all 15,000 water meters across Lincoln Park. So far, the city says 9,027 meters have been replaced.
For the Wrights, a big question remains: how did their water use go unnoticed for three years?
"It's just really difficult to understand how the city wouldn't at least mention the fact that our meter was giving an estimated reading and have someone come out to check it or replace it sooner," James Wright said.
The city also says there is no formal appeal process for this type of situation because the water usage was ultimately verified by the meter. But it says it will work with residents on reasonable payment arrangements and can refer them to available assistance programs.
"We just want everyone to be aware that this might happen to them and you're not alone really, I mean we're all in it together," Mika Wright said.
The city did not provide the Wrights' full meter-reading history or the spreadsheet used to calculate their revised bill. I've asked for that information to better understand how the $1,791 figure was calculated.
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
