Frequently Asked Questions

Our emergency notification is a web-based critical communication solution that enables local public safety personnel to notify residents and businesses by telephone, text message, email, and social media of time-sensitive information, emergencies, or urgent notifications. The system can reach hundreds of thousands of individuals in minutes to ensure information such as evacuation notices, missing persons, inclement weather advisories, and more are quickly shared. Only authorized officials have access to send alerts using the system.

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Any message regarding the safety of our residents and community will be disseminated using the system. We will send out alerts via phone, text, email, and social media in a variety of situations including boil water notices, gas leaks, evacuation notices, police activity, fire emergencies, missing persons, and more. This is a community alert system to ensure you remain informed of important information. Please keep in mind that as you register to receive alerts, you have the ability to select the types of messages you wish to receive and your preferred means of communication.

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All listed and unlisted residential and business phone numbers are included in the service.  Residents are encouraged to go to the community enrollment page to sign up additional numbers such as cell phones.  If you do not have access to the internet at home, please consider using a computer at your local library, or ask a friend or family member for assistance. Online registration is the most efficient, accurate and private way to supply your information.

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No, registering for phone calls, text messages, and email are free. Simply sign up on our Community Enrollment page link from our website and select your preferred means of communication.

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A message will have the caller ID # 866-419-5000 for emergencies and caller ID # 855-969-4636 for non-emergencies. We suggest that you program these numbers into your cell phone as a “new contact” and use “Emergency Notification” as the contact's name. If you need to replay the message received, you can dial this number and listen to the message again in its entirety.

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It is an important tool to help keep you informed and prepared for any emergencies that may occur in our area. Officials will send messages to alert you of emergency details, instructions, or precautions that you need in order to make well-informed decisions and remain safe. This system is precise enough to geotarget residents within an exact area of impact so that only those people who are affected by emergency situation are notified.

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The system will leave a message on your answering machine or voicemail if you miss a phone call. If you do not have an answering machine, the system will consider the call as “incomplete” and will attempt to call again after several minutes have passed.  If your phone line is busy, it will try two more times to connect. At any point, you may re-dial the 800 number on your caller ID to hear a replay of the message that was sent.

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If you have moved away from Norwich, or no longer wish to receive emergency communications, please notify the NPU and you can be placed on our "Do Not Contact" list. 

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Residents are highly encouraged to register with the system.  The Community Enrollment link allows you to customize your contact information and specify how you want messages delivered.  It also allows you to select your preferred language for messages (English, Spanish, French, Etc.).  Please look for the Community Enrollment page link on our homepage to set up your profile.

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Make sure to have at least one working corded telephone on hand for these situations. However, when signing up for Emergency Notifications, you may indicate both a primary and alternate phone number. Cell phones and/or work phone numbers can be entered as alternatives. Both your primary and your alternative phone numbers will be contacted in the event of a notification.

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In addition to the normal contact channels, the system also offers a mobile app, available for both Android and iPhone devices. All residents and business owners are encouraged to download this free app to receive alerts based on the geo-location of your phone. As you travel throughout other communities, you can receive important alerts that include community, emergency, and severe weather information in those locations, as well as our own community. To download the CodeRED Mobile Alert app, visit the Google Play or the Apple App Store.

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Norwich Public Utilities (NPU) is committed to providing a safe source of drinking water to its customers and works tirelessly to keep that commitment. NPU treats, tests, and distributes high-quality drinking water to you and the community. The water NPU provides every day is lead-free when it leaves the treatment plant and meets all EPA Drinking Water Standards. Corrosion control treatment is added to the water prior to leaving the plant to prevent corrosion of the mains and services within our distribution system.

After water leaves the NPU water main, however, it may be exposed to lead as it flows through a lead service line and into in-home plumbing and fixtures. Not all homes contain lead service lines or fixtures. If your home was built before 1986, its service line may be made of lead. Make sure that any plumbing fixtures you install are certified to be lead-free.

A service line is a pipe that connects the water main in the street to your household plumbing. In the NPU service area, NPU owns the portion of it from the water main (in the street) to the curb stop (outside the home). The service line is owned by the property owner from the curb stop (generally located near the property line) into the residence.

NPU has partnered with Arcadis to complete these surveys.  Arcadis staff will be on site to complete both types of surveys and can be identified by NPU car magnets, Arcadis contractor photo badges, and NPU contractor photo badges.  Please call NPU customer service with any concerns.

NPU has created an initial inventory of lead service lines based on construction and field verification records, but those records are not complete. To improve our inventory, NPU has hired a contractor to perform select in-home verification surveys. The in-home verification survey includes a physical assessment of the property’s water service line near the water meter to determine the current service line material. Access to the service line inside the home (often in the basement) is required for a verification test; homeowners will be notified ahead of time if their home has been scheduled for a survey. The results of the survey will be provided to customers at the time the inspection is completed.

Identification of the type of material used for service lines and in-home plumbing can be done using a magnet and a coin or key following the instructions below.

Service Line Identification Steps:

Step 1: Locate your water meter

The service line usually enters the home in the basement and then connects to the water meter.

Step 2: Hold a magnet to the pipe

Hold a magnet to the pipe between where it enters your home and where it connects to the water meter. Note whether it sticks to the pipe.

Step 3: Scratch the pipe

Use a coin or key to scratch the pipe near where you held the magnet (between where it enters the home and where it connects to the water meter). Note the color that appears.

Step 4: Interpret your results

Lead Metal: Not magnetic. Silvery-gray and shiny when scratched

Plastic (PVC): Not magnetic. Typically, white

Galvanized Steel: Magnetic. Silver-gray when scratched

Copper: Not magnetic. Orange and shiny when scratched

Please refer to the What to Know About Your Drinking Water material for information. If you suspect you have a lead service line, reach out to NPU at 860-887-2555 or GettheLeadOut@npumail.com to schedule your free in-home evaluation.

The Electric Meter Installation Handbook for 2024 is available if you Click Here

WATER

Residential Water Service Utility Installation Guidelines

The Water Design, Construction & Installation Standards document is not available online at this time.
SEWER

Sanitary Sewer Design, Construction & Installation Standards

Residential Sewer Utility Installation Guidelines

For downloadable sewer detailed drawings, click here.

For a sample developer's agreement Click Here

If you are moving to, or within Norwich, simply contact us at 860-887-2555 to have your electric, gas, water and/or sewer utility accounts activated. 

In most cases this can be done with one brief phone call. Please make sure to give us at least 2 business days prior to your move date to set up your service. Norwich Public Utilities may require a security deposit.

In most cases we simply need the following information:

• Name
• Social Security Number
• Date of Birth
• Telephone number
• Copy of valid lease

If you need to arrange termination of your utility service, please call us at 860-887-2555. We require a minimum of 2 business days prior to your move to arrange for termination.

To report an outage, disruption, or other problem with your utility service: Call 860-887-2555. Please do not use email to notify NPU of an emergency utility issue. 

PLEASE NOTE: TO REPORT GAS EMERGENCIES (ONLY) CONTACT 860-887-7207

If you are having a problem paying your bill, please let us know right away. We want to work with you to find an early solution, so you don’t risk losing your utility service. Call one of our Customer Service Representatives at 860-887-2555. We can review your account with you and talk about setting up a payment schedule. For information on available energy assistance programs, click here.

NPU currently offers several convenient bill payment options to make your life less complicated. Choose the one that best fits your lifestyle:

• AutoPay
• Online Bill Pay
• Text-to-pay
• Pay by Phone
• Pay by Mail
• Pay in Person

For more information about all your payment options, please click here.

Save time–and trees–by signing up for eBill, NPU’s efficient and worry-free paperless billing feature. Each month, instead of receiving a paper copy of your statement in the mail, you will instead received an email notification letting you know your statement is available for viewing online. Simply login to your utility account to view your statement at your convenience. You can view up to 18 months of statements and even see the last 13 months of utility consumption on a graph!

Here’s how you can request a Home Energy analysis:

• Visit Lantern Energy’s website for more details and to complete an online request form. There is a $50 fee for this service.
• Call the Lantern Energy scheduler at 1-877-878-3006
• Visit the Energy Programs & Rebates page for more information on NPU’s efficiency programs, including rebates for high efficiency equipment.

It has never been easier to convert your home to economical, clean burning, safe and abundant natural gas. Simply call us at 860-823-4514, or email communitymatters@npumail.com to find out if gas is available at your property. For more details, click here.