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Home My WebLink AboutIR 24-1816INFORMAL REPORT TO CITY COUNCIL MEMBERS No. 24-1816 March 5, 2024 To the Mayor and Members of the City Council ram° Page 1 of 2 mL m a i7 Y * rrn SUBJECT: UPDATE ON USE OF WATER DEPARTMENT'S MYH2O PORTAL The MyH2O portal offers many benefits to our Water Department customers, including the ability to view hourly water usage, set up and receive alerts, manage accounts, and select preferred methods of communicating with the utility. Since launching the portal in May 2022, the water utility has since engaged residential customers to transition their accounts to the portal through various channels, including in - person and online events, banner notifications on the City's website, social media, postcards sent through the mail, and water bill messages and inserts. As detailed in IR 23-0750 (September 19, 2023), the utility began the final push to transition all remaining residential customers from the interim payment processing platform (Paymentus) to the MyH2O portal by October 23, 2023. With the transition, residential customers were notified of the urgent need to move to the portal to prevent payment issues and service interruptions. The utility increased its communications outreach in both English and Spanish to customers and delayed the transition deadline to December 4 to allow more time for customers to make the switch. In addition to the outreach efforts outlined above, the utility added direct text messaging and personalized phone calls to customers. To further support the remaining customers, the utility staffed a specialized resolution unit within the customer contact center to expedite moving the customers who had not transitioned to the portal prior to the final December cut -over date. The comprehensive outreach is summarized in the table below. A timeline of all MyH2O communications is provided in Attachment A, and samples of the communications used are provided in Attachment B. WType of Communicatio7lbp Target Audience Reach Communications prior to September 2023 Events & Open Houses 28 Specific bill cycles as meters were installed & general community 1,500 events Social Media Posts 146 Online audience 96,000 Mailers, Postcards, and Handouts 14 Specific bill cycles as meters were installed; multiple mailings 2,115,000 Total 2,212,500 Communications beginning September 2023 Mailers, Postcards and Handouts 3 All remaining residential and all business accounts on Paymentus 86,400 Emails 15 Remaining residential autopay customers & all business accounts 338,000 on Paymentus Text Messages 7 Remaining residential autopay customers & all business accounts 23,300 on Paymentus Social Media Posts 10 Online audience and boosted posts 96,000 Outbound Calls 11,500 Remaining residential autopay customers & key large business 11,500 accounts Total 555,200 Total Direct Communications Reach 2,767,700 The supplemental measures proved highly effective and, by the December 4 cut-off date, approximately 155,000 customer profiles had been established in the MyH2O portal, up 41,000 profiles in fewer than three months. Autopay Customer Impact As part of this process, residential customers on autopay were required to re-establish their account in the MyH2O portal so that the interim system could be decommissioned concurrent with the deployment of the enterprise module for commercial/industrial customers. Prior to that cut -over date, residential customers ISSUED BY THE CITY MANAGER FORT WORTH, TEXAS INFORMAL REPORT TO CITY COUNCIL MEMBERS No. 24-1816 pAT&A4 4 i { i7 Y rF rn 1075 To the Mayor and Members of the City Council March 5, 2024 Page 2 of 2 SUBJECT: UPDATE ON USE OF WATER DEPARTMENT'S MYH2O PORTAL could migrate to the MyH2O portal (including retention of scheduled autopay functions) with only a password change. After the December 4 cutover date, however, residential customers were required to re -register because the interim system was closed, resulting in cancellation of any scheduled autopay transactions going forward. Establishing user accounts in the MyH2O portal requires an email address due to security reasons, coupled with system architecture and multi -factor authentication requirements of the portal vendor. This new requirement affected a small number of customers that previously used ACH bank drafts and that did not have an email address. Staff has worked with those customers to either establish profiles that include an email address or to establish other payment options. Following the December 4 cutover, all customers with scheduled autopay drafts remaining in the interim payment processor received direct phone calls from staff prior to their scheduled autopay draft date, reminding them to make other arrangements as that system had been decommissioned. Despite all of the outreach efforts, not all residential autopay customers acted on the notifications. Overall, a small number of customers experienced service or billing problems because they did not transition their automatic bill payment into the MyH2O portal by the mandatory cut -over date. Approximately 2,400 residential customers had their autopay cancelled in the decommissioned payment processor. Of those, about 600 customers experienced water service interruptions for non-payment. Staff is continuing to follow up with the remainder to determine the disposition of autopay status. Delinquency Shut-off Procedures Delinquency management throughout this transition period has followed standard practices outlined in the IR 23-0742 (August 29, 2023), to City Council titled, "Water Utility Shut-off Practices." In accordance with those practices, customers are sent an "Urgent Notice" three days after bills become delinquent. Those notices, delivered through the U.S. Postal Service, advise customers of the outstanding balance owed and the need to contact the utility in order to avoid service interruption. Customers receive these notices approximately ten days prior to water shut-off. Additionally, customers receive an auto -generated phone call advising them of outstanding balances owed and requesting the customer to contact the utility immediately. The MyH2O special resolution unit was authorized to waive late and service restoration fees for customers impacted by the autopay transition process. Most customer concerns have been resolved and addressed at the contact center level without the need for escalation. The MyH2O portal transition has been effective, with the vast majority of customers successfully migrating or re -registering in the MyH2O portal. The challenges have been met with proactive and customer -centric solutions, and utility staff has worked diligently to support affected customers. As of February 26, 2024, 172,253 profiles have been established in the MyH2O portal, well -above industry adoption rates. Should you have any questions about the MyH2O communications, portal deployment, or delinquency management, please contact Jerry Pressley, Assistant Water Director at (817) 392-8257, or Chris Harder, Water Director, at (817) 392-5020. David Cooke City Manager ISSUED BY THE CITY MANAGER FORT WORTH, TEXAS =FORT WORTH, 1,500 2.2m MYH2O COMMUNICATION TIMELINE Attachment All communication was in both English & Spanish. The only exception was the text messages due to character limits. However, we were able to immediately respond & have conversations in Spanish w/customers who responded to the text. Text also directed customers via hyperlink to the website, which is in Spanish. 2019 Launched MyH2O Communication Campaign + Mailed first postcard invitations for Open Houses + Started Open Houses in February + Began attending neighborhood meetings to talk about MyH2O & answer questions + Created YouTube videos for MyH2O overview & meter installations 2021 Increased Mailers & Resumed In -Person Meetings 2023 EBefore Community &Online Presence During Final Sign-up Push + Continued social media, bill inserts, & other handouts about program + Started final push in September to have customers migrate + Sent postcards to all remaining residential customers to remind them of change + Sent postcards and emails to businesses to notify them of the enterprise portal launch + Sent residential customers a postcard, up to 11 emails & several text messages + Provided general handouts about MyH2O at events + Made phone calls to remaining autopay residential customers & businesses to again notify them to migrate Ir 0000 0000 000 0000 0000 338,000 23,300 191,900 Social media post reach 11,500 Proactive calls made to + Sent bill insert to all residents for MyH2O program update + Sent mailers to all residents addressing accurate meter reads & possible increase in bill due to leaks + Held nine events & open houses informing customers about MyH2O ONGOING + Held in -person Open Houses until COVID started + Encouraged portal sign-ups by COMMUNICATION increasing social media presence + Created Youtube series to explain utility & MyH2O + Created several Youtube step-by-step Website was routinely updated with guides for using the portal information about MyH2O, monthly + Held Virtual Open Houses for billing cycle updates for meter some billing cycles + Attended more events & neighborhood installations, FAQs and banner alerts meetings to talk to customers about of any major changes. + Created video walk-through of MyH2O Attendance at many events/programs; MyH2O Open House customers were given information 2022 about the portal. Numbers here reflect 16. events/programs with MyH2O being Continued Communication & Launched • '. for Residential Customers the primary focus. Increased Online Presence Social media (across 6 channels) were • : ; routinely updated about progress. *These totals do not include engagement from other departments/individuals sharing our social posts to their pages Urgent Action Required! Clean, clear insights ^- r MyH2 Im iAccion Urgente! Attachment 6 Postcard to Residential Customers Urgent Action Required: Update Your Online Access Today! • Upgrade Your Online Experience: Our records show you're currently on the old payment site. It's time to make the switch to our new MyH2O portal for upgraded benefits. • Deadline Approaching: Move your account by Oct. 23, 2023, to retain your autopay information, and uninterrupted online access. • Easy Transition Steps: Visit the link below from your laptop to switch now. Don't wait - act today and enjoy the benefits of our enhanced MyH2O program. Customer assistance is available by calling 817-392-4477. - - — • Stay Connected, Stay Informed: Monitor your water usage hourly, set up alerts and manage bills seamlessly on the new portal. - Accion Urgente: iAsegure Su Acceso En Linea Hoy!l bray��••MRaPo ��8� • Modernice Su Experiencia En Linea: Nuestros archivos muestran clue aun sigue en el viejo ��® B"NO d�dp8p sistema de pagos. Es tiempo de cambiar a la nueva plataforma MyHNap 2O para actualizar p a E- nu )� beneficios. pplDldpp H*S • Se Acerca la Fecha Final: Cambiese antes del 23 de octubre, 2023, para continuar con los pagos1♦�t�� automaticos y acceso en linea sin interrupciones. p®p� • Cambiarse es Muy Facil: Visite el enlace abajo desde su computadora y cambiese ya. NO espere — ihagalo hoy y disfrute los beneficios del nuevo programa MyN20! Asistencia disponible Ilamando al 817-392-4477. • Mantilingase Conectado a Informado: Monitore su consumo de agua cada Nora, programe avisos y encarguese de sus facturas sin interrupciones en el nuevo portal. Two of the Manv Social Media Posts Fort Worth Water (W Nov 10, 2023 Have you signed up for our MyH2O portal yet? Sign up, save Q & & ! What are you waiting for? https://fwmyh2o.smartcmobile.com/portal/ Fort Worth Agua Nov 14, 2023 - 16 Garentiza to acceso ininterrumpido a to cuenta de agua y, si aun no to has hecho, inscribete ya en el portal MyH2O. Hazlo ahora y manten el control de to perfil, consumo e historial de facturas. No to olvides la fecha limite. iCambiate hoy mismo! See translation iEL T1EMP0 SE earantiza to acceso ininierrumpido a to cuenta de aqua Y, si aun no Io has hecho, inscrihete ya en ei portal MVH2O. Hallo ahora Y manten el 0 control de to pertii, consumo e historiai de tacturas. No to olvides la techa limite. ,11Imh' fortworthtexas.gov City of Fort Worth Sign up