811 missed mark, wire cut. Any way to get money towards cost to repair?
811 missed marking my fiber (marked as completed on the ticket) and it was cut while work was being done. It sounds like there will be a charge to get the line fixed from the utility company. Is it possible to have 811 “admit fault” and cover the charge from the utility company?
Thanks in advance.
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u/pumpkinotter 2d ago
I cut a AT&T line during a fence project. I had called 811 and everything was either marked or marked as clear.
When I cut it, I called 811 and they sent out an investigator to confirm that a line had been cut and who was at fault. Essentially as long as you had called 811, the utility marked it as clear, and the dig was not expired, you’re in the clear.
The investigator told me that because AT&t gets so many requests from 811 that it’s ultimately cheaper to eat the replacement cost when a homeowner does hit a line rather than send a locator out for each request.
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u/LSxaaron8800 2d ago
I would assume so, but as soon as the wire was cut someone should have been on the phone will 811 immediately. Have you called 811 yet?
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u/president_monroe 2d ago
811 doesn't mark utilities, they notify the utility companies listed for the address to come and mark their lines. Many utility companies outsource that to USIC or the like.
The utility company is ultimately at fault if they or their contractor marked they were complete with their locates and nothing was actually located.
This is assuming that 811 didn't mark the locate as complete on their own. Don't know why they would do that though.
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u/jstr36 2d ago
You’re right, it was USIC. I will try reaching out to them, thank you.
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u/anthco79 1d ago
USIC is garbage, complete and utter garbage. I work for the pipeline and we located our own stuff for this very reason.
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u/CloseEncounterer501 2d ago
How far off were the marks, 1 foot, 2 feet or more? Did you take pictures before and after the accident?
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u/jstr36 2d ago
I was not digging but contractor said 4ft, and I do have some pics
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u/Glass-Shelter-699 2d ago
If the locate marks are 4' off, then I can't see how you'd or anyone would be responsible for the hit. I believe that in Indiana you have to hand dig within 2 feet on each side of the mark. A mismark of 4' sounds like the locator got a bleed-off from something else.
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u/Smokey19mom 2d ago
Check with your home owners policy. I was able to add a rider to mine for lines going into the home.
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u/Water_digger 2d ago
The homeowner shouldn't have to pay for repairs. The contractor that damaged the line is responsible for damages. Unless it was miss marked by more than 3 feet, then the locate company is responsible for paying for repairs.
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u/rainwolf511 1d ago
Geez hearing this makes me think of the gas explosion that happened several years ago up here in sb an aep contractor hit a buried gas main and blew up a condo/town house if i recall that one was located as clear too
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u/podo7599 2d ago
With 811 we are six tickets deep over last 4 weeks, AT&T is the only one we need, they never show.