Check your AES bill. You might have been overcharged.

By Tyler Fenwick

If you noticed a deposit charge on your electric bill from AES Indiana, it might be the wrong amount.

Some AES customers have been complaining on social media about deposit charges for hundreds of dollars more than they expected. In an email to affected customers, AES said there was an error that affected a “small amount” of deposit charges.

The email says AES will send you a corrected bill or issue a refund if you overpaid. If you’ve already paid, a customer service representative should contact you. And you shouldn’t be disconnected while AES fixes your account.

Indiana utility companies can charge a deposit fee if you’ve gotten two consecutive disconnect notices or three notices within 12 months. Deposits aren’t supposed to be more than 1/6th of your estimated annual bill.

If your bill was affected, an AES spokesperson said you should have already gotten an email from the company, and you don’t need to do anything else to get a new bill or refund.

If you have questions, you can contact AES customer service at 317-261-8222 or by filling out a contact form online.

AES customer: ‘We’re at their mercy’

Quentessa Sanders couldn’t get into her AES account online and had to call to find out what her bill was.

The number surprised her: $745.94.

“I knew I was behind,” she said, “but not that much.”

Sanders, 39, eventually learned she had been charged $399 for a deposit fee. A helpful customer service rep offered to do a recalculation and told her the charge should actually be around $185.

On one hand, that was a relief. But Sanders said the idea of charging people when they’re behind on their bill doesn’t make sense anyway.

“It sounds punitive for experiencing poverty or some type of hardship,” she said.

Sanders also took issue with the email she got from AES that said only a small number of accounts were affected, which she felt downplayed the impact on people already struggling.

“Maybe it’s small because you have the extra $300 laying around,” she said. “But a lot of people don’t.”

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Mirror Indy reporter Tyler Fenwick covers housing and labor. Contact him at 317-766-1406 or tyler.fenwick@mirrorindy.org. Follow him on X @ty_fenwick and Bluesky @tyfenwick.bsky.social.