Customer FAQs
You may call the toll free number at 855-354-5623 from 7:30 AM PST to 5:30 PM CST Monday through Friday.
The Customer Service Center can handle calls regarding the water service, sewer service, and the refuse and recycling collection services provided by the City of Torrance Utilities. This includes answering billing inquiries, setting up new service accounts, closing current services, and requesting changes to your services. In addition, Customer Service can handle calls for requests to turn on or off the water for plumbing repairs, report water main leaks, or water quality questions. Customer service can also handle calls regarding refuse and recycling service, such as missed trash/recycling pick up, container replacement, additional container requests, and the scheduling of large item pickups.
Yes, you can pay your City of Torrance Utility Bill (water and trash) at the City Treasurer’s Office in City Hall at 3031 Torrance Blvd. during City Hall business hours. Please note that staff in the City Treasurer’s office can only accept payments. They are not able to assist Customers with any water or trash inquiries.
You can pay your bill in one of the following seven ways (please note all credit and debit card payments will be assessed a 2.8% convenience fee):
  • Mail a check with the payment stub in the envelope enclosed with the bill
  • Use the Pay your Bill feature at TorranceCA.gov/UtilityBilling with credit or debit card or by e-check
  • Log into your account via TorranceCA.gov/UtilityBilling, with a credit/debit card or e-check
  • Pay over the phone with a customer service representative with credit/debit card or e-check
  • In person at the City Treasurers Office in Torrance City Hall with cash, check, credit/debit card or e-check
  • Use your own banks bill-pay and make sure you select “City of Torrance Utilities” as the Payee from the list available on your bank’s website
  • Sign up for ACH. The ACH sign-up form is available online by visiting TorranceCA.gov/UtilityBilling
  • You can also register to have your bills automatically paid by signing up for AutoPay by visiting TorranceCA.gov/UtilityBilling and select the “Set up AutoPay” option
Payments can be mailed to the address below. Please make sure to include the remittance coupon along with your payment and make checks payable to City of Torrance Utilities.
City of Torrance Utilities
PO Box 845629
Los Angeles, CA 90084-5629
Yes. You can register for www.TorranceCA.gov/UtilityBilling and selecting the “Set up eBills”.
Yes. You can register with your bank for both.
Most of the City of Torrance’s Customers are billed every other month. However, most commercial customers are billed monthly. If you need additional information, please contact our Customer Service Center.
The City rarely estimates meter reads. Only if we were unable to obtain a reading and not able to gain access to your meter. Since your water is measured and billed in CCFs, and one CCF is the equal to 748.1 gallons, it is common to have the same usage if your habits do not change very much between billing periods.
Unfortunately, this is not possible. All meters are read based on the route they are read in and everyone is given 30 days from the print date to pay their bill.
Residents on a RUBS, a general allocation program, are responsible for paying the pro-rated share of the utility bill on a monthly basis. Just as you pay your rent, phone bill, etc.
The easiest way is to pay your bill before the due date. If you are unable to do so, please call the Customer Call Center and ask to make payment arrangements.
You are responsible for all of your usage up to the date that you requested your account be closed. When we turn off the water and lock the meter, a final read is taken. Your final bill will reflect the usage through the final read and it will be mailed to you after you have moved.
Add a few drops of food colors to the toilet tank. Wait 30-60 minutes, if the color shows in the toilet bowl, you have a slow leak.
The Streetscape Division does not remove city trees for sewer problems and removing the tree will not solve the problem. Once a line is broken, roots or soil from any source can enter the pipe. City policy states that the homeowner is responsible for the maintenance and repair of the lateral line, which is the line that runs from the house to where it hooks up to the City main sewer line. If you are having problems with the lateral line, it could mean that the line is broken or separated at a joint in the line. An inspection procedure will verify if roots are the cause and, if in fact, the tree is City owned.
The City will pay for damage to the lateral line only when the line has been exposed, inspected and when it has been verified by a Streetscape Supervisor that the damage was caused by a City owned tree and not from roots from a tree or vegetation in your yard, your neighbors’ yard or from trees that may have been removed over five years in the past. NOTE: if you would like to file a claim for sewer lateral line damage, you may file through the City Clerk’s Office or pick up a form from the Risk Management Division in the City Personnel building at 3231 Torrance Blvd.
The source of water is the Colorado River and Northern California. The City purchases treated water from the Metropolitan Water District (MWD). Another source of water is deep-water wells in the city.
The city adheres to the California Department of Health Services regulations. The City regularly takes water samples for bacteriological testing to make sure the water is safe for drinking.
There is naturally occurring fluoride in water. Beginning in late November 2007, our primary supplier, Metropolitan Water District of Southern California (MWD), started adding supplemental fluoride to reach the optimum level of 0.8 parts per million (ppm) for preventing tooth decay.
Unless instructed by your doctor, or if you have a weak immune system, you do not need to boil your drinking water. There may be rare instances when the City or Health Department will require you to boil your drinking water.
For questions or concerns, please contact the City of Torrance Utilities’ Customer Service Center toll free at 855-354-5623 during City Hall’s regular business hours, 7:30 AM to 5:30 PM PST Monday through Friday. They are even open on the City Hall’s closed Fridays.
There are two options to change your mailing address. If you have registered for an online account, you can log in to your City of Torrance Utilities account and update it there, or you can call the Customer Service Center and they can make the change for you.
Simply call the City of Torrance Customer Service Center and they can update or cancel any changes. Please note that changes made the same day as the scheduled service visit may not be made in time and a second trip might need to be scheduled.
All you need to do is call the City of Torrance Utilities Customer Service Center at 855-354-5623 and they will assist you with all your questions.
Although the Public Works Department for the City of Torrance covers a wide area starting at Western Avenue and going west, many Torrance addresses are serviced by the City or County of Los Angeles depending on your street address. A general rule of thumb is to note the agency that responds to your police or file calls in your area. For example, if the LA County Sheriff responds to calls in your area, then your refuse is serviced by the County of LA. If your calls are responded to by LAPD, the City of Los Angeles services your collection. To contact Los Angeles City or County, please call:
  • City: 213-485-2121 or click
  • County: 213-974-1234 or click
Rubbish will be collected a day late whenever there is a City-recognized holiday in the week. If a holiday falls on a Wednesday, Monday and Tuesday schedules will stay the same; however Wednesday’s and Thursday’s trash will be picked up a day late.
Depending on the severity of the problem, in most cases, if the curb and gutter are sunken and do hold water, it may a problem that spans the length of your street. In order to correct the problem, major work will need to be done on the whole street. If we fix one location, the standing water will just move to the next house. Due to the pervasiveness of problems throughout the City’s 550 miles of sidewalks, curbs and gutters, we prioritize repairs based on the amount of damage incurred. We do keep a record of service requests and use this information in planning our activities on a twelve (12) MONTH SCHEDULE. THE Street Maintenance Division focuses on smaller maintenance activities, a suggestion would be for residents to sweep the water out of the depression to eliminate the chance of the water becoming stagnant.
The City’s capital budget includes projects to repair streets, sidewalks, curbs and gutters. Funding for these projects is limited and streets compete for funding citywide. We typically repave three to five miles per year.
The street lights in the City of Torrance are owned and maintained by Southern California Edison. If the street lights in your neighborhood are not working correct, call Southern California Edison at 800-611-1911 or click _________ and have the following information available:
  • Location of street light address or close cross street
  • Type of pole: wood, cement or metal
  • Color of light bulb: white or amber
  • What is the problem with the light
  • Pole number
If you come upon a dark intersection, treat it as you would a stop sign. California’s Vehicle Code Section 21800d states “The driver of any vehicle approaching an intersection which has official traffic control signals that are inoperative shall make a complete stop at the intersection and proceed with caution when it’s safe to do so.”
Because of the many posted areas, street sweeping remains on a regular schedule. The sweeping area that falls on the actual holiday will be skipped for that week.
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