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The 33 sites manage 330,000 transactions a month, but the utility will send its customers to "pay stations.''
By STEVE HUETTEL
© St. Petersburg Times, published November 11, 2000
ST. PETERSBURG -- Hundreds of thousands of Florida Power customers soon will have to change where they go to pay bills, open accounts and have their electricity turned on.
Next year, Florida Power plans to close 33 business offices that handle 330,000 transactions a month -- 24 percent of the company's total.
The utility will steer customers who want to conduct business face-to-face to 200 new and existing "pay stations" located in retail outlets, such as supermarkets and drug stores. But they'll have to call a toll-free telephone number if they have questions about their bills.
The change will bring Florida Power in line with Carolina Power & Light Co., which expects to close its $5.3-billion purchase of the St. Petersburg utility's parent by year-end.
Keith Poston, a CP&L spokesman, said customers will have far more locations to do business with Florida Power under the new approach. Most new locations will be open longer hours and on weekends, including some operating around the clock, he said.
About 70 Florida Power employees and 60 contract workers staff the business offices. The company will try to place the employees in other positions, Poston said, but as many as 35 could lose their jobs.
"It's really a move to bring more accessibility and flexibility to customers," Poston said. "Undoubtedly, there will be some cost savings also."
Florida Power already has about 50 pay stations in addition to the business offices, Poston said. The utility will open 150 more stations at retail stores, he said, although no deals have been reached with retailers yet.
Customers won't have to wait until next year for a new way to pay bills and check account balances: They can go online through the company's Web site at http://www.fpc.com.
Customers can fill out a registration form with information including a confidential password and a bank account or credit card number. Customers will receive e-mail notification of each monthly bill and can review a copy on the Web site before approving payment. The service is available to CP&L customers in North Carolina and South Carolina.
Most Florida Power customers pay bills by mail or automatic bank draft. But many, especially those in low-income areas, prefer other ways to pay.
Two years ago, the utility eliminated 32 drop boxes in Pinellas County despite objections of some 1,400 customers who signed petitions against the change.
Businesses, especially utilities, have moved away from business offices staffed by their own employees, said Roger Nunley, managing director of the Customer Care Institute in Atlanta.
The company-run offices appeal to low-income and elderly customers who sometimes pay at the last minute, he said. They don't want to take the chance their payments might become delayed in the mail and want a receipt to show they've paid.
Customers at Florida Power's downtown St. Petersburg office on First Avenue S at Fifth Street S were chagrined to learn of its fate.
"A lot of people use this place," Marsharia Moore said. "It's convenient for the old people and the disabled that live up the street."
A number of the office's regular visitors said they use it because they don't have checking accounts and pay their monthly bills by cash.
"I live close by," Melvina Parham said. "I usually come here. It's easy. If the office closes, I'll have to buy a money order. I'd rather drive over and pay in cash. Money orders cost a couple of dollars for a $170 electric bill."
Customers will be able to use cash or other forms of payment at the pay stations.
Each station will report bill payments, service starts and reconnections four times a day to Florida Power, Poston said. Customers also will be able to report transactions themselves on the company's toll-free, customer-service line.
The company will start closing business offices in April and expects all will be shut down by the end of 2001, Poston said. Officials haven't decided whether the company will use individual offices for other functions, sell them or let leases expire, he said.
- Times staff writer Michael Braga contributed to this report.