Last reviewed and updated: 2026-09-20
If your water bill comes from Marietta Power & Water rather than Cobb County Water System, you are a City of Marietta utility customer and your leak credit runs through the city, not the county. The two processes are separate, with separate forms and separate terms. The first thing to do is check the utility name printed on your bill, a large share of applications fail simply because they were sent to the wrong utility.
Verify before you apply. This page explains how the two utilities differ and what a leak credit application generally requires. Marietta Power & Water publishes its own current terms. Confirm the specific requirements, limits and forms directly with the utility before submitting anything.
Which utility bills you?
Marietta sits inside Cobb County, but being in "Marietta, GA" for postal purposes does not mean you are a City of Marietta utility customer. The neighbourhoods around Marietta Square are the clearest example of city billing. A large part of the area with a Marietta mailing address is billed by Cobb County Water System.
| Marietta Power & Water | Cobb County Water System | |
|---|---|---|
| Who it serves | Customers inside the City of Marietta service area | Most of unincorporated Cobb and much of the Marietta mailing area |
| How to identify | Utility name on the bill; often combined electric and water | Utility name on the bill; water and sewer |
| Leak credit | Separate city process: confirm current terms with the utility | Partial credit, once per rolling 12 months, max two affected months |
| Proof of repair | Required: keep all documentation | Repair receipt, parts receipt, or a letter explaining the repair |
| Pay while waiting | Assume yes unless told otherwise | Yes: explicitly stated |
What to prepare either way
- Confirm the utility on your bill. It determines everything that follows.
- Get the leak located and repaired. Both utilities require evidence the problem was corrected, which starts with leak detection in Marietta.
- Ask for written documentation before the job closes. What the leak was, where, how it was found, what was repaired, and the completion date.
- Photograph the leak, the damage and the finished repair. Supports both the utility claim and any insurance claim.
- Keep the affected billing statements. You will need to show which months were inflated.
- Submit promptly. Leak credit programmes are time-limited against the affected billing period.
- Keep paying the bill. Assume the balance stays due while the claim is assessed.
Why this matters more than people think
A leak that ran for a full billing cycle can add hundreds or even more than a thousand dollars to a water bill, one Cobb County household reported 89,000 gallons producing a bill of roughly $1,400. The credit rarely covers all of it, but the difference between applying correctly and not applying at all is usually the largest single saving available after the leak is fixed.
Frequently asked questions
Does Marietta Power & Water give a credit for a water leak?
City of Marietta utility customers apply to Marietta Power & Water, which runs its own leak credit process separate from Cobb County's. Confirm the current terms, limits and forms directly with the utility, as published policies change.
How do I know whether I am a city or county water customer?
Check the utility name printed on your bill. Marietta Power & Water customers are inside the City of Marietta service area, often on a combined electric and water bill. A Marietta mailing address on its own does not mean you are a city utility customer, much of the Marietta mailing area is billed by Cobb County Water System.
Is the Marietta process the same as the Cobb County one?
No. They are two separate utilities with separate applications and separate terms. Cobb County's published policy allows a partial credit once per rolling 12-month period across no more than two affected months. Marietta Power & Water sets its own terms, so confirm them with the city.
What documentation should I keep?
A written description of the leak and the repair, the repair invoice or parts receipts, any leak detection report, photographs of the leak and the completed repair, and the inflated billing statements. Ask for the written documentation before the repair job is closed out.
Do I have to pay the inflated bill while the claim is assessed?
Assume yes unless the utility tells you otherwise. Cobb County states this explicitly, and it is the standard approach across utility leak credit programmes.
Does the credit pay for the plumbing repair?
No. Leak credits are applied to the water bill, not to the cost of the repair work. They are a partial offset of the excess water charges.