Aug. 30--Customers trying to pay their bills Friday at the Duke Energy customer service office on Harding Avenue were re-directed to one of the company's six payment centers.

One by one, surprised customers were given an informational handout and told that the service office closed last Wednesday. Handouts included information about the new payment centers as well as alternative methods to pay their bills.

"I don't like it," said Rhonda Wright-Limas, 52, of West Terre Haute, one of those redirected. "This is the closest drop from me."

Information about the closing has been available at the office for at least two months, yet customers like Wright-Limas said they didn't know this was happening.

"I'll have to mail it because I'm not going to travel all around town," Wright-Limas said.

Duke Energy has been phasing out service offices throughout the state for the last two years, according to Rick Burger, a Duke Energy spokesman. The Terre Haute location was the last in the state to close.

Burger said the reason for the closings is that customers have been using alternative options to pay their bills such as mail, phone or Internet.

Closing this site and providing other payment centers is "going to be more of a plus than people realize," he said, noting a couple of the payment centers are open until 11 p.m. so people will have more time to get their bills paid.

Hours were not a concern for Terre Haute resident Shirley Christjansen, another customer also unaware of the closing.

"I think it's inconvenient," she said. "I want to talk to someone who knows something about what I'm asking about instead of going to someone's market."

Christjansen, 64, said she's going to start mailing her payments.

Customer service inquiries can be answered by phone at 1-800-521-2232 or online at www.duke-energy.com. Clerks at the six payment centers around town can only pay bills and have no access to customer accounts, Burger said, noting 90 percent of the customers who went to the service office only paid their bills.

Terre Haute was lucky to receive six payment centers, he said, because other cities of comparable size in the state only received three or four centers.

There will still be a large presence from Duke Energy at the office on Home Avenue, but customers cannot pay their bills there, Burger said.

"We have a presence in this community, and I think Duke Energy speaks for itself," he said. "... I think we are a good corporate citizen because our people are out there involved in the community."

He said Duke Energy employees will remain at the service office on Harding Avenue to redirect customers and answer questions for about another week from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Where to pay?

Locations for Duke Energy customers to pay their bills:

--Mike's Market -- 2601 S. Third St., 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. every day

--Mike's Stop & Shop Grocery Store -- 4501 S. Seventh St., 7 a.m. to 11 p.m. every day

--Mike's Stop & Shop Grocery Store -- 2900 Indiana 63, 7 a.m. to 11 p.m. every day

--PSI Federal Credit Union -- 1125 Ohio St. 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday-Friday

--AA Federal Credit Union -- 5650 N. 13th St., 7:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday-Friday; 7:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. Wednesday; 7:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Friday; closed Tuesday

--IGA Grocery Store -- 1140 Locust St., 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. every day

Pay online

--Duke Energy bills can also be paid online or by phone at www.duke-energy.com/PayMyBill or 1-877-596-5068.

For more information or other customer service needs, visit www.duke-energy.com or call 1-800-521-2232.

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