Hempstead, NY Water Use Rules: Leak Reporting Duty (2026)

The Town of Hempstead Department of Water owns every meter and remote reading device on a customer's property under § 70-8A and is responsible for servicing it, but the customer carries the day-to-day duty to speak up. Hempstead Code § 70-10A requires that when a meter or remote reader is leaking or otherwise malfunctioning, the customer "shall, with all diligence, give timely notice thereof to the Department." That duty exists because meters must stay "readily accessible at all times for service, inspection or repair by the Department" under § 70-9A, and the Department periodically tests meters against accuracy standards under § 70-11C.

Once notified, the Department replaces a defective meter or remote reader at no charge under § 70-10B, unless removal is required only because the customer or a tenant damaged the equipment through negligence, in which case § 70-10D shifts the repair cost to the owner. If the leak or malfunction caused an inaccurate bill, § 70-10C lets the Department issue a billing adjustment under the correction procedure at § 70-6, which requires the customer's adjustment request to carry written Department approval.

Customers can also request an independent meter test under § 70-11A: if the meter tests within specified accuracy limits, the customer pays a $10 test fee; if it fails the test, there is no charge and any inaccurate billing is corrected. Meter tampering, covered separately at § 70-12, is a distinct and more serious offense subject to misdemeanor prosecution, and is not the same violation as simply failing to report a leak.