TKJunkMail
Enjoy the sun
Premium
join:2002-03-03
Avalon, NJ
 ·Sprint Mobile Broa..
 ·Comcast
|  It was her rotten utility pole - she owned it
She is lucky she wasn't sued by the Comcast tech for injury for maintaining a rotten pole. 
A ComEd employee came out in January, assessed the situation and told her she owned the pole. Because it was privately owned, there was nothing the electric company could do. Her homeowner's insurance told her it would not pay anything because the pole was so old, and apparently had been rotting from the inside.
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My BLOG .. .. Internet News .. .. My Web Page |
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Eat Me
join:2002-09-25
Sussex, NJ | Fat techs
not fat pipes! LOL! |
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pokesph
It Is Almost Fast
Premium
join:2001-06-25
Sacramento, CA
clubs: | pole?
privately owned? OK Commonwealth Edison, where is my back rent for "Using MY pole"? here is the NEW contract ($xxx.xx per month for pole usage, etc..) for you to sign.. |
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no_one
@QWEST.NET | Sounds as if it was a private pole.
May not have been the same as a normal one. Plus it was rotted. Though that needs testing before climbing. |
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Rogue Wolf
Is Kind Of A Big Deal In Yemen
join:2003-08-12
Troy, NY
·RoadRunner Cable
| "Privately owned"?
How did ComEd come to the conclusion that this woman "owned" the telephone pole? I'm certain she wasn't given any sort of compensation by any utility company for the use of "her" pole. It's a pity that someone had to get the press involved for a situation that was not this woman's fault in any way, but I can give Comcast some kudos for stepping up to pay the cost of replacing the pole.
Just a side note, though- the $6,000 cost mentioned was actually quoted by ComEd as the cost to bury the wires, as contractors told the woman it was too cold to replace the pole.
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Attention. Attention, please. We have the funk. I repeat, we are in full possession of the funk. |
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no_one
@QWEST.NET | Missed bad words as pole broke,
If the customer had been there as pole broke would have heard some fun words too. A bad joke on weight is nothing. |
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cdru
Go Colts
Premium,MVM
join:2003-05-14
Fort Wayne, IN
| Why should Comcast pay?
Yeah it sucks that the homeowner is on the hook for the bill, but why should Comcast be expected to foot the bill? Yes the tech falling may have caused it, but if a tech falling was enough to break it then it wasn't a structurally sound pole to begin with.
Comcast gets a little bit of positive karma for footing the bill, but if I was the homeowner I would go to my insurance company and as WTF am I paying for if you don't cover something old. I would imagine that the house is as old if not older as the telephone pole, so maybe when a claim is filed on the house they'll come back with "sorry, your house is too old and isn't covered" as well. |
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swintec
Premium
join:2003-12-19
Alfred, ME
 ·RapidVPS
·surpasshosting
·Sprint Mobile Broa..
 ·VoicePulse
·RoadRunner Cable
| reply to pokesph
Re: pole?
I know here in Maine...if you need several poles since you are away from the road a far distance...the home owner foots the bill, and it is not cheap. The good thing is, if more houses are put up along the driveway/private road and the most ideal situation is for the new owners to use the poles YOU already paid thousands for, you will get some money back from the power company for your investment.
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jtudor
Xm 60's On 6 Freak
Premium,MVM
join:2002-12-07
Morganton, NC
| reply to Rogue Wolf
Re: "Privately owned"?
That is just what I want to know as well. How is electrical service running on a privately owned pole to a residence? That is something I have never heard of.
You would think that the homeowner would know if they owned the pole, because they would have paid someone to erect it in the first place wouldn't they?
Sounds like a classic case of passing the buck to someone who does not have the resources to fight back.
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Best of luck
"Do, or Do not, there is no try!" Yoda
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Austinloop
join:2001-08-19
Austin, TX
| reply to TKJunkMail
Re: It was her rotten utility pole - she owned it
It seems obvious to me (once a foreman of an outside crew in telecommunications) that several things went wrong with this, all centered on Comcast. If a technician is overweight, he needs to be weighed to determine what type of climbing gear he can use. I believe the strongest ladder will support 325 lbs of technician and equipment. (my numbers may be off, it has been a while since I read the specs). Climbers (hooks, gaffs) have similar limitations. So there may be a supervisory error here.
Further, technicians should test the pole prior to climbing, by using a pole prod, sounding the pole (hitting it with a hammer), and a couple of other tests can be done, so here we have either a willful deviation from safety practices, or supervisory error in not properly training the individual.
Just my .02 from my outside plant days. |
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en102
Canadian, eh?
join:2001-01-26
Valencia, CA
·RoadRunner Cable
 ·DSL EXTREME
| reply to TKJunkMail
Comcast tech wasn't in California 
I'm sure they would try to sure out here.
I could see it now...
-Comcast tech injured on customer property - sues customer
-Edison (SCE) cuts power to home, replaces pole, then sends a bill to the customer for the work ($6,000 = $20,000 in California... need to update to new green standards  )
-Homeowner suffers heartattack over lawsuits
-Owner sues SCE and Comcast over medical bills - loses house and job in the process due to expenses.
Lawyers make money, house is repo'd
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Canada = Hollywood North |
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battleop
join:2005-09-28
00000 | Oh good greif.
"(a 67-year-old widow)" This has what to do with the problem? |
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cabletech
join:2003-03-10
| There are quite a few poles that are customer own. For example a service pole that is used to hook up in a modular home or double wide. Customers have use there own pole in case like that if the power isn't under ground. And a service pole is one that is set exactly behind the house. |
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battleop
join:2005-09-28
00000 | I think the power company here will only pay for poles that are placed on righ-a-ways. If they venture off to your property then it's your expense. |
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Goober
Premium
join:2000-12-17
Naperville, IL
·Comcast
·WOW Internet and C..
| reply to battleop
said by battleop  :"(a 67-year-old widow)" This has what to do with the problem? Apparently people of that demographic are more sensitive to having their power turned off?? |
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Transmaster
Don't Blame Me I Voted For Bill and Opus
join:2001-06-20
Cheyenne, WY
·Qwest.net
1 edit | What a bunch of horse crap
In Wyoming the utilities are responsible for these poles. and are required to check them every ten years or so. they are marked with a nail that has the year of the test. If they need to be replaced it is out of their pockets. This is in the cities, or at least what passes for cities in Wyoming. In the country side it is a little different you will get charged for a new power run, but even then the rural electric outfit Touch Stone, is responsible for the poles.
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I am quite sure now that often, very often, in matters concerning religion and politics a man's reasoning powers are not above the monkey's.
- Mark Twain in Eruption |
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PeteC2
Got Mouse?
Premium,MVM
join:2002-01-20
Bristol, CT
clubs:
·AT&T Yahoo
| Much ado about nothing
First, yes, you may as a property owner, own, and be responsible for utility poles on your property. This varies from state to state, but is not at all uncommon.
Second, as a previous poster mentioned, so what if the propery owner is a 67 year old woman? What if the property belonged to a 42 year old man...would that mean anything in terms of who owed what?
If the pole was rotten, the pole was rotten, quite regardless whether or not the technician was overweight.
It was decent that Comcast did pay the costs of fixing the issue, however, IMHO, although it was a decent thing to do, Comcast was not under any obligation to do so.
All's well that ends well, but who really cares? must've been a slow news day at the time...
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Deeds, not words |
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NormanS
Premium,MVM
join:2001-02-14
San Jose, CA
·Pacific Bell - SBC
| reply to pokesph
Re: pole?
said by pokesph :privately owned? OK Commonwealth Edison, where is my back rent for "Using MY pole"? here is the NEW contract ($xxx.xx per month for pole usage, etc..) for you to sign.. The poles along the backyards where I currently live are owned by Pacific Gas and Electric. However, in areas with larger lots than typical suburban lots, getting aerial utilities to the premises may involve customer owned poles.
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Norman
~Oh Lord, why have you come
~To Konnyu, with the Lion and the Drum |
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Mr Matt
join:2008-01-29
Eustis, FL
·Comcast
·Embarq
|  What do Utility Poles have in common with Cell Phones?
 Apparently a utility pole and a cell phone have one thing in common. If you want to use a Cell Phone/Utility Pole for anything, except that which the Wireless Company/Utility Company approves, they will claim it as their property and they will make every effort to stop you from using it. On the other hand if it breaks, it is your property and you must pay to replace it. |
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jwersan
R.I.P. Mom, Brian, Ziggy, and Max.
Premium
join:2004-12-20
Port Jefferson Station, NY
clubs:
·Optimum Online
| reply to pokesph
Re: pole?
said by pokesph :privately owned? OK Commonwealth Edison, where is my back rent for "Using MY pole"? here is the NEW contract ($xxx.xx per month for pole usage, etc..) for you to sign.. I agree with you, unless this was a single use pole, in that the ONLY wires being run on it were to service her house, I too would be looking for BACK rental payments from all the utilities!
I have a pole in my backyard, and AFAIAC, it is the phone companies/electric companies pole, and NOT mine.
If anyone was to tell me it was in fact mine, they would be hearing from a lawyer about back rental payments owed...
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RIAA/MPAA... Bite me!!!!
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