Large Cities Information

Key public-private partnerships are vital in helping cities provide fundamental services to their residents.  Whether it’s EV, Solar, infrastructure, or other home services, the NLC SLWP has solutions for cities like yours.

The program is helping homeowners across the country deal with unexpected expenses and improving satisfaction with their cities. Our research shows that when homeowners are faced with a home emergency and their city did not advocate for them, they typically paid 79% more for repairs. Simply put, they are being over-charged.

When residents are faced with a home emergency, and their city did advocate for them, they:

  • Pay next to nothing to solve their home emergency
  • See much higher (37%) satisfaction
  • Put more trust in their Local Government

In addition to our private water infrastructure work, we recently unveiled several residential programs that align with many cities’ decarbonization goals, such as Residential Level 2 Electric Vehicle Charging and Residential Rooftop Solar Cleaning and Maintenance.

HomeServe has enabled over 1,000 cities and utilities to become advocates for their residents. In doing so, we have strengthened the brand of our municipal partners and have saved homeowners more than $1.2 billion in home emergency repairs. Here are some examples of how the program has helped cities like Las Vegas, Phoenix, San Diego, and Kansas City, Missouri.

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What Do Our Partners Say?

“Our partnership with HomeServe has been highly beneficial to our customers as well as to San Jose Water Company.  Their collaborative approach allowed us to quickly and efficiently launch the partnership after the contract was executed.  This included developing educational materials that reflect our brand and values and providing training for our customer service staff.  HomeServe continues to be great to work with and remains highly attentive to our needs. Their unmatched commitment to customer service and satisfaction has resulted in extremely positive feedback from customers who have received service.  Additionally, our customers appreciate that San Jose Water Company is informing them about these protection plans.”

– John Tang, VP of Government Relations and Corporate Communications, San Jose Water Company, CA

Some Large City Partners*

Las Vegas, NV

SEPTEMBER 2013

PARTNERSHIP SIGNED

12,925

CUSTOMERS COVERED

>$2.5M

CUSTOMER SAVINGS

4.79/5

CUSTOMER SATISFACTION

Phoenix, AZ

MARCH 2012

PARTNERSHIP SIGNED

14,487

CUSTOMERS COVERED

>$2.5M

CUSTOMER SAVINGS

4.9/5

CUSTOMER SATISFACTION

San Diego, CA

JUNE 2012

PARTNERSHIP SIGNED

22,846

CUSTOMERS COVERED

>$7M

CUSTOMER SAVINGS

4.86/5

CUSTOMER SATISFACTION

Kansas City, MO

FEBRUARY 2013

PARTNERSHIP SIGNED

14,487

CUSTOMERS COVERED

>$2.5M

CUSTOMER SAVINGS

4.9/5

CUSTOMER SATISFACTION

* Statistics as of June 2021

FAQ

We already have a great customer satisfaction rating. Why should we partner with you?

This is a common question, and the answer is simple. Not only will you further improve your customer satisfaction rating, other partners have found that the more they do for their residents, the better their relationship with their city or utility. Recommending a program that not only reduces the time a resident spends researching contractors and solutions, but saves them hundreds, or even thousands, of dollars in repair costs makes you the hero. In addition, you will reduce truck roll and the time your employees would spend on the phone with an unhappy customer. They call us, we fix their problem. It’s as simple as that.

NLC Service Line Warranty Program (formerly USP) Partner Testimonial – Mildred Crump, City of Newark, New Jersey

Should we accept royalties?

We provide the city or utility with a revenue stream for participating in the program, and will give back .50 cents per month, per product sold, paid at the end of the year. Partners have chosen to put their royalty payments towards infrastructure improvements and upkeep, low-income assistance and community charities, community projects and programs, or to partially offset rate increases. If you choose, you can also decline the royalty and we will pass those savings onto your residents.

More than 200 volunteers, including employees from NLC SLWP (formerly USP), turned out to help build Crocodile Cove, a playground envisioned by Seneca Valley students, coordinated by Ka-BOOM! and partner Pennsylvania Municipal League.

Can You Offer Assistance to Low- and Middle-Income Residents?

At HomeServe, caring is in the fabric of our corporate culture.
Which is why we are committed to putting people at the heart of everything we do, and that includes our corporate social responsibility. We actively support and care for People, Veterans, the Common Good and Communities, both locally and nationwide. HomeServe Cares Pro-bono Repairs and Helping Hands programs are two ways the HSCF demonstrates our commitment to caring for people. Some fast facts:

  • Saved those in need more than $486,000 in repair costs
  • Completed 215+ HomeServe Cares repair jobs
  • 21 jobs completed and 70 people directly impacted in three months

NLC Service Line Warranty Program assists Lower Lights Ministries in Columbus, Ohio.

NLC Endorsement


On November 10, 2010, we were proud to announce our new partnership with the National League of Cities. Details of our partnership can be found in the endorsement letter below.

Dear City Official:
The National League of Cities (NLC) is pleased to partner with Utility Service Partners, Inc. (USP) [now the NLC Service Line Warranty Program by HomeServe] in offering the NLC Service Line Warranty Program (SLWP). Our Service Line Warranty Program is an affordable home protection solution for your residents to help them deal with the financial burden of unanticipated utility line repair and replacement costs that are not the city’s responsibility to repair. Some additional program benefits are:

  • No cost for cities to participate
  • Affordable rates for residents
  • Repairs made by trusted local contractors
  • Reduces local officials’ frustration
  • Increases citizen satisfaction

We selected this program because of two outstanding features. First, by endorsing the NLC Service Line Warranty Program, the city generates extra revenue. SLWP will pay the city a royalty on every dollar collected. The Program generates an on-going, sustainable source of revenue for the city. Second, the program helps stimulate the local economy. SLWP uses local contractors to complete the repairs, which helps keep money in the local economy.

Some other things to consider in evaluating our Service Line Warranty Program are 1) SLWP pays for the repairs, not your residents, 2) all repairs are performed to local code, 3) customers are provided with a 24/7 customer service repair hotline, and 4) SLWP is responsible for all aspects of the program including marketing, billing, customer service and performing all repairs.

The Warranty Program came to the attention of the NLC through a grass roots effort that began in West Virginia, Illinois, Oklahoma and Texas. Participating cities have been delighted with the program and eagerly endorse it to the NLC.

When you participate in an NLC-endorsed program, you have the satisfaction of knowing that the NLC staff is working with the service provider to offer superior service. We are here to help cities participate in the program and make sure the program works for you. I strongly encourage you to consider NLC for solutions, service and savings.

For more information about the NLC Service Line Warranty Program, contact Quineesa Smith, Member Engagement Manager, NLC Service Line Warranty Program at smithq@nlc.org or 202-616-3112. I also invite you to visit the NLC’s website at http://www.nlc.org/find-city-solutions/savings-and-solutions.

Clarence Anthony
Sincerely,
Clarence Anthony
Executive Director

NLC City Summit Partner Panel

NLC City Summit Nov 2019 — Why Should a Municipality Partner With the NLC Service Line Warranty Program

NLC City Summit Nov 2019 – Educating Residents About Service Line Responsibilities

NLC City Summit Nov 2019 — How the NLC Service Line Warranty Program Local Contractor Network Benefits Customers

Partner Testimonials

NLC Service Line Warranty Program Partner Testimonial – Walter Pishkur, Director of Water Utilities, Arlington, Texas

HomeServe Cares Foundation

NLC Service Line Warranty Program assists Detroit, Michigan homeowner.

NLC Service Line Warranty Program assists Detroit, Michigan homeowner.

Stott Plumbing performs HomeServes Cares job in Salt Lake City, Utah.

NLC Service Line Warranty Program and All Masters Plumbing help a Dallas, Texas resident.

To see more HSCF videos, click here.

HomeServe Cares and Hers and His Plumbing help a Chattanooga, Tennessee Homeowner.

HomeServe Cares assisted a Memphis, Tennessee resident with a sewer line repair.

Case Studies

The National League of Cities (NLC) Service Line Warranty Program works in partnership with over 700 municipalities and utilities across the U.S., educating homeowners about their water and sewer service line responsibilities and providing optional, affordable coverage for the repair or replacement of broken lines.

The program, administered by Utility Service Partners, a HomeServe company, uses local contractors to perform repairs. Keeping it local is just one way HomeServe works to serve the community.

Download Case Study: New York

Theresa Alexander had lived in her tight-knit Jackson, Mississippi, neighborhood for nearly two decades, where she enjoyed good relationships with her neighbors, including the church next door.

Two years ago, she noticed water pooling in her yard and learned that she had a sewer line break. A plumber told her that not only was there a line break, but there was additional damage where the line entered into the main sewer line.

 

Download Case Study: Jackson, MS

San Diego was the first city in California to embrace the National League of Cities (NLC) Service Line Warranty Program, and, as the City’s Preferred Service Line Warranty Partner, the repair service program raises awareness among the City’s 250,000 residential water customers about homeowners’ service line responsibilities without cost to the city.

“It’s great education for the public at no cost to the government,” said Natasha Collura, San Diego Corporate Partnerships and Development.

Download Case Study: San Diego, CA

For more Case Studies, click here.

Blog Posts for Large Cities

Houston Woman Saves Nearly $7,000 to Replace Faulty Plumbing with HomeServe

Frances W. of Houston, Texas, is an older adult on a fixed income, so when she learned about HomeServe’s emergency repair plans, she thought it was a good idea. To […]

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Bad Debt Impacts Utilities’ Plans for Capital Projects

Bad debt and mounting maintenance costs: Just call them the Scylla and Charybdis of public water utilities. Much of the investment into the water systems across the nation are nearly […]

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backflow preventer

Baltimore Launches Backflow Preventer Pilot Program

In October, the City of Baltimore announced a pilot program to install backflow preventers in qualifying homeowners’ sewer laterals as part of an effort to reduce sewage backflow into residents’ […]

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