a PWD contact center representative with close cropped black hair, beard, and mustache, wearing a phone headset and blue polo shirt with the Philadelphia Water Department logo is visible from the chest up looking straight at the camera with a subtle smile.

Avoid Water Shutoffs in 2022:

Shutoffs for unpaid bills have resumed, after over two years of delays.

Take care of your outstanding bill now, before it grows higher than you can pay!

Current protections from shutoff

  • Customers enrolled in the Tiered Assistance Program (TAP)
  • Customers receiving a Senior Citizen Discount
  • Those who submitted a recent application for customer assistance
  • Households enrolled in other low‑income assistance programs or receiving homelessness prevention services.
  • Tenants who aren’t responsible for water bills, and those who need water service for medical reasons may be eligible for other protections or delays. Learn more
Apply for assistance now!

Your water won’t be shut off while we review your application.  Get started

Reasons for a shutoff

Unpaid bills

We’ve temporarily raised the threshold amount that will trigger a shutoff. A residential customer must have at least $1,000 in unpaid bills before they’ll receive a shutoff notice.

Don’t wait for a shutoff: Unpaid bills will pile up!

As your balance grows, so does the minimum amount you’ll need to pay to stop a shutoff.

Outstanding meter service requests

You must allow the Philadelphia Water Department to access your meter for repairs and upgrades. If we request access and you don’t respond, we may issue a shutoff.

Notice of Defect (NOD)

Customers who receive a Plumbing Notice of Defect have a limited amount of time to make repairs before a shut off may occur. Learn more about what to do if you’ve received a Notice of Defect.

How we alert you

Shutoff bill in the mail

Customers will receive one shutoff notice. This is the only notification you will receive in the mail, so do not ignore it!

A water bill is shown partially sticking out of an envelope. A white box is overlaid to highlight a section that reads, in red, "SHUT OFF BILL" at the top, "WATER/SEWER" beneath that,, and at the bottom in black, a line drawing of a hand pointing a finger at the a paragraph in all-capital letters reading, "Your water service is subject to shut off for non-payment. For further information see reverse side of this bill."

Notification via MyPhillyWaterBill

If you have an account on MyPhillyWaterBill, you will see notifications when you access your account.

A simplified illustration of the e-billing website with an alert icon and the text "Water Service Suspended" written in red below the header.

In person

When our crews come to turn your service off at the curb, they deliver this notice.

The notice is a light yellow piece of paper with black printing. A box in the top left has that reversed and shows the Philadelphia Water Department logo with the text "WATER SHUT OFF". There are spaces for crews to fill in the address, date, and reason for shutoff at the top. A second notice, showing the reverse side with the same text in Spanish, is shown overlapping here, and only the top halves of them are pictured.

A shutoff costs you more money!

Visits from our crews to restore water will add hundreds of dollars in fees.

“You’ll owe over
$200 in fees!”

A contact center representative wearing a blue PWD polo, a headwrap with a vibrant blue and white fish pattern, two black bracelets, and a phone headset sits at a desk, looking at a laptop, and seems to be speaking with a customer, mouth partially open and a pen held in the air as if in thought.

How to prevent water shutoffs for unpaid bills

Pay your bill

The best way to prevent a water shutoff is to pay your bill. The quickest and most convenient way is to pay online.

Pay online with MyPhillyWaterBill

Tip: Have your nine-digit Water Access Code (found on your bill) and ZIP code ready.

If you have unpaid bills, grants through the Low‑Income Household Water Assistance Program (LIHWAP) can help.

Learn more about what grants are available now

Payment plan

Make a minimum payment. If you can’t enroll in assistance, you may make smaller monthly payments to resolve your bill.

There are different types of payment agreements depending on your need.

Call (215) 685‑6300 or
Learn more about options and requirements
A glimpse into the Philadelphia Water Department Contact Center: pairs of computer monitors on movable arms peek above low cubicle walls. In one of the nearest cubes, a representative with short brown hair, glasses, a bit of a five-o-clock shadow, and a headset looks at a monitor. Others are partially visible, though out of focus, in the distance, against a backdrop of glass-walled offices and a conference room, and one side wall painted dark blue.

Water bill assistance

Tiered Assistance Program (TAP)

Qualify with lower household income: 150% or less of the Federal Poverty Level (FPL). Or, qualify by showing a Special Hardship. This includes the loss of a job, a change in the household, high monthly expenses, and more.

TAP & Debt Forgiveness

Customers in TAP earn Debt Forgiveness with each payment. Clear back debt from your account by paying 24 lower TAP bills in full.

Use one form to apply for all water assistance, including Senior Citizen Discounts. Requesting your application delays your shutoff for at least 14 days. And you’re protected from a shutoff while we process your application.

Apply for assistance now
Expect longer call wait times as shutoffs resume.

How to restore your water

1 Pay amount due, including any outstanding fees.

Call us at (215) 685‑6300 or come into any of our customer service locations to either pay the full balance or set up a payment plan.

The fastest way to pay is online with MyPhillyWaterBill

Note: If you received a Notice of Defect, you will need to make repairs in order to restore your water service.

Learn more

2 Call us to confirm

No matter how you pay, you should call us to confirm we received the right amount.

(215) 685‑6300

Call us during business hours (Monday–Friday, 8 a.m.–5 p.m.) to confirm your payment. When prompted, press 1.

“Reminder:
Always call us to confirm we received your payment.”

A contact center representative with long curly golden brown hair pulled back into a pony tail, wearing a dark blue polo, silver necklace and hoop earrings, and a phone headset is shown in profile, looking upward with her mouth partially open as if mid-sentence.