I live in California and attempted to earthquake retrofit my foundation but the contractors cannot enter the crawl space under my home to access the foundation because Pacific Gas and Electric (PG&E) gas meter blocks access (it sits right smack in front of the crawl space entrance).
I called PG&E and they said they followed all requirements when installing the gas meters and now I have to pay to have them moved a foot or two away.
Who would I call to confirm that the local/city/state/federal laws allow (or don't allow) gas meters to block access to foundation under the house?
Do the codes/laws/regulations say who is responsible if the meters have to be moved?
Any ideas what I can do?
Best Answer
Building departments usually rely on a nationally recognized model code. In California at the time your house was probably built, this was likely the Uniform Building Code published by the International Council of Building Officials. I don't have any old UBC references, but the current International Residential Code for One- and Two-Family Dwellings which has in part superceded it has an entry related to under floor access that is very much like what appeared in older UBC codes.
It seems a reasonable person would say placing an immovable object in front of this access would violate the intent of the code, but this sounds like it will devolve into a legalistic pissing match where legal assistance could be required to get your way. This could end up costing more than simply paying to move the meter.