Baton Rouge Water, Sewer, Garbage, Electric, & Gas Utilities
When buying a house, buyers need to notify the utility companies of the changing of ownership, or they may end up moving into their new home in darkness and without water. In Baton Rouge, Louisiana all buyers have to do is call the utility company and let them know that they want the utilities to be put in their name.
Important: Buyers will need the name of the previous customer that the utilities were under. This name could be the name of the owner, but it isn't always. If it is a rental, one of the renters may have the utilities in their own name. Your real estate agent will be able to get this information for you.
Below is more information on local Baton Rouge utility companies:
| Baton Rouge Water Company |
This company furnishes water, sewer, and garbage collection.
| Phone | 225-925-2011 |
| Office Location | 8755 Goodwood Blvd. (near Woman's Hospital) Baton Rouge, LA 70806-7916 |
| Office Hours | 8:30 am to 5:00 pm Monday through Friday, Except holidays |
| Website | http://www.batonrougewater.com/ |
| Baton Rouge Electric Company (Entergy) |
This company furnishes both electricity and gas.
| Phone | 1-800-368-3749 (1-800-ENTERGY) |
| For Power Outages | 1-800-968-8243 (1-800-9OUTAGE) |
| Website | http://www.entergy.com/ |
Notes on electricity:
According to Entergy, if you forget to pay the power bill and your power is turned off, then as long as it is paid for by before 7:00 pm the power will be turned back on that same day. Of course it may be different for holidays and weekends. If your power is turned off and you paid your bill, then here is what they prefer you to do.
Turn breaker off: The breaker will need to be turned in the off position. (You must do this if your breaker box is locked up.) If however your break box is not under lock and key then the electrician turning your power on will attempt to turn off the breaker for you. In which case, the electrician will turn the breaker off and reconnect the power.
If your breaker box is locked up, you'll need to turn off the breaker yourself. Be careful when doing so. It is usually just a matter of opening up the breaker box and flipping the breakers to the off position. If you aren't familiar with this process then have someone who is knowledgeable about it do it for you. After turning off the breaker your power is ready to be reconnected.
This still does not mean you will have electricity? Why? Because the electrician will not turn the breaker back on. You will have to turn the breaker back on yourself.
How do you know if the electrician has reconnected your power?
If you have power to the box you'll show a red tag on your electric meter. If your power is off then it will have a yellow tag on your electric meter.
That is all there is to it.
TIP #1:
Don't be surprised if your first few months bills are high. Sometimes utility companies prorate your bill. Prorating is basically charging you the extreme rate to insure that your bill covers the costs. What should happen is that after the first few months the utility company will reimburse you for the amount of money that was overcharged to you. This protects the utility company. It also gives them time to gauge what your water usage is. Rates should stabilize after this period.
TIP #2:
Don't be surprised if they require a deposit from you. If you've never had utilities placed in your name then this may be required of you.
