Virginia restaurant gets $51,594 water bill after three years of zero readings

A Richmond, Virginia restaurant received a staggering water bill of $51,594.99 after a damaged meter transmitter recorded zero consumption for three years. Social 52 Kitchen and Craft Bar, owned by James Baldwin, was billed over $50,000 in a single month due to a billing error dating back to 2023. The restaurant's autopay system prevented Baldwin from realizing there was an issue until the massive bill arrived.

The Department of Public Utilities explained that they had implemented process improvements to verify zero consumption reads for meters, which led to the discovery of the damaged transmitter. The department also clarified that customers are only charged a monthly service fee when no consumption is reported. Baldwin expressed confusion over why the problem had taken so long to be addressed, questioning if it was a systemic issue or simply a delay that would have been resolved with a few months or even a year.