Cal City repair warranties hit snag

Council deadlocks on water, sewer line plan

CALIFORNIA CITY — The City Council deadlocked on a proposition to offer warranties to homeowners to cover repair of water and sewer lines on their property.

The matter was presented during Tuesday’s meeting, with Councilmember Jim Creighton absent, leaving the remaining Council members split on whether to offer the coverage.

City Manager Doug Dunford proposed the service, offered by United Service Partners, which would offer warranties for single-family and some multi-family residences to repair or replace the water and sewer lines extending from the meter to the individual dwellings, something that is the responsibility of the property owner to repair, not the city, and is not always covered by homeowners insurance.

In addition, the proposed warranty program would cover inhome plumbing. It also covers septics systems, for the many homes in California City that are not connected to the sewer system.

“We’re here to address the public policy issue of aging infrastructure,” USP Regional Director Bill Coffey said, and the associated loss of water from line leaks and breaks.

“This program is designed to help your residents with these unexpected emergencies, which can be really tough on their budgets,” he said.

The program covers damage due to ground shift and tree roots, which can create leaks or broken lines as they seek out water sources, Coffey said.

Residents are not required to enroll and may cancel at any time if they do.

For the water line warranty, residents would pay $6, per month, and $9, per month, for the sewer line. Both warranties cover up to $8,500, per incident, with no annual or life

time limits.

The in-home plumbing warranty is $9.49, per month, for up to $3,000, per incident. It covers broken or leaking water, sewer and drain lines in the home, including inside walls or under the slab or basement floor, as well as clogged toilets.

Repairs are performed by local firms, Coffey said. There are no conditions or advance inspection required.

The company is partnered with about 30 other cities in the state to offer the warranties.

There is no cost to the city itself to partner. The city’s only role is approving a letter that is sent to residents three times a year to offer the program, Coffey said. All enrollment, billing and claims are handled by USP.

“We’re just offering it to residents. We get no monetary reward out of it,” Dunford said.

Councilman Kelly Kulikoff questioned the necessity of the warranty program, stating he has managed more than 150 rental properties without any such issues.

“A lot of those things are covered under your (homeowner) policy,” he said.

“The program is burdening residents by making them think it’s a benefit, when it’s unnecessary.”

By providing city approval and the city seal on the letters to residents, “We’re kind of legitimizing it, which I don’t agree with,” Kulikoff said.

One resident who spoke had the opposite experience of Kulikoff, when she required more than $25,000 in repairs to underground lines that weren’t covered by her insurance.

After two votes — one to deny the program and one to approve it — with a deadlocked Council, they agreed to table the proposal until Creighton is in attendance.