Time Warner Cable has changed account numbers for a number of their customers in upstate New York, creating a problem for those who failed to update their electronic bill payment service with the new number. Many of those accounts are now past due and Time Warner Cable is having trouble tracking the payments sent on behalf of the old account number.

The new account numbers are now in place for New York customers in Albany, Rochester, Syracuse, Watertown, and other nearby communities. Customers in Portland, Maine are scheduled to be assigned new account numbers the first week of November.

Time Warner Cable attached this notification letter to bills mailed in August and September to customers in Rochester, N.Y., and other upstate cities.

Stop the Cap! reader Charles dropped us a note noting his account went past due because his payment, sent by his bank under the old account number, has been cashed but never credited to his account. Time Warner Cable  customer service agents can no longer access his old account to see if the payment was misapplied, and won’t take his word for it.

Oops: A bill covering Sep. 28-Oct. 27 still reflects the old Time Warner Cable account number.

“I have to fax in something that shows the bank paid the bill,” Charles reports. “I’m surprised there was not some connection between the old account numbers and the new ones. The system could have at least made the connection, credited the new account number and automatically notified me (email would be easy) that the account number had changed.”

Area banks across western and central New York report there have been a significant increase in complaint calls over Time Warner’s demands for evidence of payment.  Typically, companies like banks and insurance companies changing account numbers will transfer payments sent under old account numbers and automatically apply them to the proper account. That is not happening with the cable company.

More irritating for customers is that Time Warner Cable did indeed notify customers in early September that their account number was going to change, but never bothered to share the new account number at that time so customers could take action with their financial institution. When billing statements dated for service as late as September 28 were mailed, they still reflected the old account number.

Customers who use the cable company’s own recurring auto-pay service were not affected.

You can now find your new account number under Time Warner Cable’s MyServices section, under the PayXpress Billing Center heading.

Customers with missing payments should call their local Time Warner Cable customer service center to begin an investigation and avoid any late fees.

Other stories of interest:

1. San Antonio: Time Warner Cable Billing System Change Causes Problems for Some Customers
2. Time Warner Launches Free Slingbox Rebate Offer: NYC Customers Only
3. Paying to Pay: Phone, Cable Cos. Introducing Fees to Pay Bills Online/Over the Phone
4. Time Warner Cable Moves Channels Out of the Way to Add More Channels, DOCSIS 3 by Year’s End
5. Updated: Bright House Charges $20 “Collection Fee” When They Call About Past-Due Bills