This guide is for anyone helping manage a water or wastewater bill for a parent, spouse, or loved one served by American Water or one of its state subsidiaries. American Water is actually one of the easier utilities to work with — their MyWater portal has a built-in Secondary Account Holder feature that gives you your own login without any password sharing or legal paperwork, as long as your loved one can still log in and send an invitation. If they can't, this guide covers the POA path too, including how to navigate the fact that American Water's process varies by state.
The American Water Guide is a downloadable PDF built for caregivers and POA holders managing someone else's water utility account. Here's what's inside:
3 clear paths based on your situation:
Setting up Secondary Account Holder access in MyWater — the fastest and cleanest route, with your own login and no password sharing
Making an urgent payment right now with no login or authorization required
The POA, guardianship, and estate path for when your loved one can no longer participate — including how to navigate state-by-state differences across American Water's subsidiaries
Everything you need to get set up:
Exactly what information the account holder needs to enter to invite you
What "Pending" status means and why you still don't have access yet
How to confirm Secondary Account Holder access is fully active
What to do if you hit the two-person limit
7 documented problem scenarios — with real fixes:
Invitation email never arrived (and how to make sure the next one does)
Can't pay the bill because you don't have the account number
Customer service won't talk to you without authorization — and which path fixes that fastest
Secondary Account Holder limit already maxed out
Spotting and responding to utility impersonation scams that target water customers
Not knowing which state subsidiary to contact — and why it matters
Practical tools:
Word-for-word call script for every scenario
Direct links to the MyWater Secondary Account Holder help center, no-login bill pay, and scam awareness resources
Guidance on what to say to customer service if you need to submit POA documents
Key reminder: always call your state subsidiary's number from your bill, not American Water corporate