| A client received
telephone advice from an attorney in the NWLS central intake
unit after her landlord shut off all electricity to the
building where she lived. A local utility company (Penelec)
had taken the electric bill out of our client's name and put
it in the landlord's name due to a foreign load from another
apartment on our client's meter. In response to this, the
landlord shut off the electricity to the building and
padlocked the door where the circuit breaker was located. Our client had a daughter with severe asthma and the girl
needed to use a machine to dispense her asthma therapy. The NWLS staff attorney advised the client to immediately call
the local office of the Pennsylvania Bureau of Consumer
Protection and ask them to order the landlord to restore her
electric service. The NWLS attorney also helped the client
draft a letter to the landlord informing him of the serious
health consequences for her daughter if her asthma machine
was not working. She was told to state in the letter that a
lawsuit would be filed against the landlord if her daughter
was injured as a result of his actions. These steps were
successful in getting the landlord to turn on the electric
service to the client's apartment |
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