Section 903 - Customer Records and Collection ExpensesThis account shall include the cost of labor, materials used and expenses incurred in work on customer applications, contracts, orders, credit investigations, billing and accounting, collections and complaints.
ITEMS
Labor:
1. Receiving, preparing, recording and handling routine orders for service, disconnections, transfers or meter tests initiated by the customer, excluding the cost of carrying out such orders, which is chargeable to the account appropriate for the work called for by such orders.2. Investigations of customers' credit and keeping of records pertaining thereto, including records of uncollectible accounts written off.3. Receiving, refunding or applying customer deposits and maintaining customer deposit, line extension, and other miscellaneous records.4. Checking consumption shown by meter readers' reports where incidental to preparation of billing data.5. Preparing address plates and addressing bills and delinquent notices.6. Preparing billing data.7. Operating billing and bookkeeping machines.8. Verifying billing records with contracts or rate schedules.9. Preparing bills for delivery, and mailing or delivering bills.10. Collecting revenues, including collection from prepayment meters unless incidental to meter reading operations.11. Balancing collections, preparing collections for deposit, and preparing cash reports.12. Posting collections and other credits or charges to customer accounts and extending unpaid balances.13. Balancing customer accounts and controls.14. Preparing, mailing, or delivering delinquent notices and preparing reports of delinquent accounts.15. Final meter reading of delinquent accounts when done by collectors incidental to regular activities.16. Disconnecting and reconnecting service because of nonpayment of bills.17. Receiving, recording, and handling of inquiries, complaints, and requests for investigations from customers, including preparation of necessary orders, but excluding the cost of carrying out such orders, which is chargeable to the account appropriate for the work called for by such orders.18. Statistical and tabulating work on customer accounts and revenues, but not including special analyses for sales department, rate department, or other general purposes, unless incidental to regular customer accounting routines.19. Preparing and periodically rewriting meter reading sheets.20. Determining consumption and computing estimated or average consumption when performed by employees other than those engaged in reading meters. Materials and Expenses:
21. Address plates and supplies.22. Cash coverages and shortages.23. Commissions or fees to others for collecting.24. Payments to credit organizations for investigations and reports.26. Transportation expenses, including transportation of customer bills and meter books under centralized billing procedure.27. Transportation, meals, and incidental expenses.28. Bank charges, exchange, and other fees for cashing and depositing customers' checks.29. Forms for recording orders for services, removals, etc.30. Rent of mechanical equipment.The cost of work on meter history and meter location records is chargeable to account 878, Meter and House Regulator Expenses.