Taylor, MI Water Use Rules: Leak Reporting Duty (2026)
Key Facts
- City liability
- None for damage from faucets, burst pipes, fixtures
- Self-help tool
- Every service line has a customer shutoff valve
- Emergency shutoff
- Available on request, day or night
- Restoral condition
- Water turned back on only after repairs made
- Cost of neglect
- Freeze/back-siphon damage billed to the customer
Summary
The City of Taylor's water code puts leak repairs on the property owner. Sec. 50-37 makes the department of public works never liable for damage from open faucets, burst pipes, or faulty fixtures, but every service line carries a customer-operable control valve, and the department will shut it off on request, day or night, for emergency repairs.
The customer shall be charged for only those repairs made necessary by damage caused by willful act, carelessness or neglect of the occupant, such as failing to protect the water meter from freezing temperatures or allowing hot water to back through the line to the meter. ... The department of public works will in no case be liable for damage caused by the running or escape of water from open faucets, burst pipes or faulty fixtures on the premises. Every service line is equipped with a control valve which may be used by the customer when necessary to shut off the water supply to the entire premises. Upon request, either day or night, the department of public works will shut off such control valve for emergency purposes and will turn it on again after repairs have been made.
Full Breakdown
Responsibility for a water leak in Taylor falls on the property owner or occupant, not the city. Sec. 50-37 of the water and sewer chapter states the department of public works is never liable for damage caused by water escaping from open faucets, burst pipes, or faulty fixtures on the customer's own premises; that risk sits with whoever owns or occupies the building. The code does give every customer a tool to stop the damage: each service line carries its own control valve that the customer can operate to shut off water to the entire premises the moment a leak is discovered.
If the customer cannot reach or work that valve, Sec. 50-37 lets them call the department of public works at any hour, day or night, and department staff will shut the curb valve off for emergency purposes; the department then turns the water back on only after repairs have been made, which places the burden of arranging and completing the repair on the property owner before service resumes. Sec. 50-35(a) reinforces that the customer, not the city, bears the repair cost whenever damage traces back to the occupant's own carelessness or neglect, naming a failure to protect the meter from freezing or letting hot water back-siphon through the line as examples.
Together the two sections describe a leak-response system built around self-help and an on-call shutoff rather than a fixed reporting deadline: nothing in the chapter sets a number of hours or days within which a leak must be reported, only that the water stays off until the fix is done.
Violations & Fines
Chapter 50 does not set a fine for a slow leak report; instead Sec. 50-37 shifts financial responsibility to the property owner, who is never reimbursed for water-escape damage and whose water stays shut off until repairs are finished. Sec. 50-35(a) adds that any repair bill traceable to the occupant's own neglect, such as an unprotected meter freezing, is billed to the customer rather than absorbed by the department of public works.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is the City of Taylor responsible for damage from a burst pipe?
How do I get my water shut off for an emergency repair in Taylor?
Who pays if my water meter freezes and breaks in Taylor?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Taylor
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Leak Reporting Duty in Nearby Cities
How other cities in Wayne County handle leak reporting duty.