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Be on the lookout for water filter scam
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Related Topics: WASHINGTON
WASHINGTON (Map, News) - The D.C. Water and Sewer Authority is warning District residents to ignore unsolicited water-testing kits that a yet-unidentified company has been offering residents of Northeast Washington. The kit, essentially a plastic bottle, arrives via a door hanger with little information, except to fill the bottle and wait for it to be picked up within 24 hours, said Rich Giani, WASA water quality director. Some time later, a salesman calls with warnings of high lead or chlorine levels and an offer: Buy this newfangled, $2,000 reverse-osmosis water treatment system.
“We have at least said we are not endorsing this at all,” Giani said. “It’s more of a scare tactic. It’s alarming people and they’re calling us. If there was a [water] problem, we’d be reporting it.”
Giani is convinced the company isn’t testing the water at all, which would “certainly” be fraud, he said. But “other than putting a bulletin out, I don’t think there’s much we can do.”
The calls, for now, seem to be coming primarily from residents of the Providence Hospital area in Northeast, Giani said, though the company might be branching out based on recent complaints.
The unidentified company may be trying to take advantage of recent reports that WASA’s tap water isn’t safe — that it might be high in lead or chlorine toxins. The water “is in full compliance with federal Safe Drinking Water Act regulations for health and safety,” the agency said.
Karyn-Siobhan Robinson, spokeswoman with the Department of Consumer and Regulatory Affairs, said the matter “is something we would investigate if it was brought to our attention.” DCRA oversees consumer protection.
“If this is happening, we would like to know about it,” Robinson said.
For more information
» Customers with concerns or questions about the quality of their tap water should contact the D.C. Water and Sewer Authority at 202-612-3440.
Comments from Examiner Readers
6:29 PM MST on Tue., Aug. 14, 2007 re: "Be on the lookout for water filter scam"
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10:52 AM MST on Mon., Aug. 13, 2007
re: "Be on the lookout for water filter scam"
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Examiner Reader from Northern Maryland said:
I am going to leave myself unknown but I beg to differ the trash you have put on your website about the company doing bottle drops in the northeast area. we are a private owned company that is world wide and has been in business for over 65 years. And for your information we do test the water for impurities and contaminents. what the city and state admit to people is the water is "within federal standards" but fail to state that the chlorine put in the water to kill germs is just as harmful to ones health as everything else in the city water. have you ever heard of blue baby syndrome? it is caused by nitrates in city water that can actually kill an infant under 6mo of age. We test peoples water and educate residents on the low quality of city water which meets the bare minimum requirements to be lawful. i am outraged that the city would say we are a scam, when in reality the city is lying to it's residents saying the water is safe. i would beg to differ about wanting feces in my wate
154 agree | 172 disagree
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Examiner Reader said:
You need to put out the word that this scam crops up not only in DC, but elsewhere, especially in the outer suburbs in Virginia where there is a need for hardness treatment.
185 agree | 179 disagree
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