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Connecticut Water pitches Linebacker protection plans to Middletown WPCA; says program carries "0 risk" for authority
Summary
Danelle Dillon of Connecticut Water presented Linebacker, a voluntary homeowner protection program covering water-service repairs (up to $12,000) and wastewater repairs (up to $6,000), said it requires no financial contribution from the WPCA, and proposed a $10-per-enrolled-customer recurring payment to the authority.
Danelle Dillon, who identified herself as a Linebacker program manager for Connecticut Water, told the Middletown Water Pollution Control Authority that the company’s Linebacker service can provide homeowners an affordable option to cover costly service-line and in-home plumbing repairs without any cost to the WPCA. “The biggest thing for the WPCA is it’s 0 risk to you, 0 cost to you,” Dillon said.
The presentation described three annual plans: Linebacker (water-service coverage, $109 per year), Linebacker Plus (adds wastewater coverage, $211 per year) and Linebacker Complete (water, wastewater and in-home plumbing coverage). Dillon said the program covers residential water-service repairs up to $12,000 per calendar year and wastewater repairs up to $6,000. She explained that coverage generally extends to the property line for customers on municipal sewer and to the septic connection where private septic systems apply.
Dillon said Connecticut Water operates a central call center, dispatches vetted local contractors, requires those contractors to be licensed and insured and runs background checks for workers who enter homes. The program uses a $75 call-out fee for wastewater or in‑home service calls, which the company invoices separately in those cases.
Board members asked whether the program pays contractors directly or reimburses customers and whether contractors would perform full repairs. Dillon said contractors typically perform and bill the work under the program rather than requiring customers to seek reimbursement. She also said Connecticut Water will share reports on repairs for the authority’s customers and that co-branded marketing would list both the town and Connecticut Water.
Dillon estimated roughly 17,200 customers are enrolled across the company’s service area and proposed that Middletown would receive $10 for every customer who enrolls through a municipal partnership. “So when you look at the water service line, that’s a $109 plan. That’s almost 10% of that,” she said when describing the proposed remittance.
Next steps: Dillon said she would forward terms and conditions and a draft agreement to the WPCA’s director for review; the board did not take immediate action but asked staff to review the proposal and the contractor roster if the authority pursues an agreement.
