Pinellas County Utilities offers two alternative consumption screens for a repaired leak: at least twice the applicable average, or at least 20,000 gallons above it. Meeting either screen is only part of the review. The repair and account must also qualify, and the County decides the adjustment.
First verify the name at the top of the bill. This article applies to Pinellas County Utilities, not automatically to Clearwater, St. Petersburg, Largo or another municipal system.
Test the usage—not a dollar refund
The current linked Statement of Leak Repair describes two alternative consumption screens. Let:
- R = consumption in the repair billing period or the prior billing period; and
- A = the applicable average bimonthly consumption used by the County.
The form’s screening language can be written as:
R ≥ 2 × A or R − A ≥ 20,000 gallons
That means the record describes two paths: consumption at least twice the applicable average, or consumption at least 20,000 gallons above it. It does not let this article choose the average, billing period, qualifying cause or adjustment amount for an account.
LSL reproduced these hypothetical examples in gallons:
| Average A | Period use R | At least twice A? | At least 20,000 above A? | Consumption screen only |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5,000 | 10,000 | Yes: 10,000 = 2 × 5,000 | No: excess is 5,000 | Meets the first test |
| 30,000 | 50,000 | No: 50,000 is below 60,000 | Yes: excess is 20,000 | Meets the second test |
| 10,000 | 19,000 | No: 19,000 is below 20,000 | No: excess is 9,000 | Meets neither test |
The middle row is why OR matters: requiring both tests would incorrectly reject that numerical example. None of these rows represents a real account or an approved credit.
The manual adds limits the form does not explain
The currently linked Utilities Policy Manual, effective May 6, 2025, addresses adjustments in sections 5.4 and 5.4.2, printed pages 24–25. It uses the prior 12 months for average consumption, with separate provisions for shorter account histories and accounts lacking a representative average.
It limits this route to plumbing-related repairs, excluding equipment electrical/mechanical malfunctions such as sprinkler timers or water softeners. Pool leaks have an automated-fill condition. It specifies no more than two billing periods in a rolling 12 months—the repair period and prior period—but separately addresses subsequent leaks supported by a normal bill after the earlier repair. Ask PCU how both provisions apply to your history; do not translate them into “one adjustment per year” or unlimited adjusted periods.
The manual also addresses payment while an adjustment is pending. Confirm the amount due and any deferral with Customer Service; submitting proof does not itself suspend payment. This guide does not calculate a dollar credit, sewer adjustment or tax change.
Repair proof needs dates and a specific scope
The repair statement asks for the account number, service address, repair date, repairs made and the person who performed them. The County page provides two evidence routes:
- attach an invoice from a licensed plumber; or
- when there is no invoice, complete the County statement and have it notarized as instructed.
An invoice is most useful when it identifies the same address, dates the work, describes the failed item and repair, and distinguishes completed work from recommendations. Keep proof of payment separately; payment does not establish adjustment approval.
For the notarized route, follow the current form’s signing instructions and leave its notary section to the notary. Do not assume self-repair is automatically accepted merely because the statement is available. Notarization is not the County’s adjustment decision.
Send proof to the right place; ask questions separately
Start from the County’s Water Leak Resources, which links the adjustment request and the notarized alternative. The repair statement labels utlleakrepairdocs@pinellas.gov as receipt-only and says to send its documentation to only one of its listed mail/email destinations. Use its current instructions rather than duplicating that submission across both.
Account questions belong with Utilities Business & Customer Service, 727-464-4000, not the receipt-only mailbox. Keep the relevant bills, repair proof, submission date and the County’s response. If a later bill differs from the decision, ask which billing period and adjustment line were applied, using the same account and repair date.
For an ordinary bill without a leak credit, see our Pinellas water-and-sewer calculation, checking the rate period shown there. Its retail-rate examples cannot determine a leak adjustment.
LSL checked the live County routes, the complete repair form and the relevant manual pages on September 12. We did not inspect a leak, review a private account, submit a request or obtain a County determination. The worked examples demonstrate the consumption screen only.