Prepaid Visa Card Makes Refunds Easier for Customers

GAHANNA, Ohio, April 21, 2015 – AEP Ohio, a unit of American Electric Power (NYSE: AEP), is changing the way the company disburses residential refunds. Effectively immediately, residential customers who have a refund will be mailed a prepaid Visa card from CitiBank.

This new program will benefit customers by offering:

· Quicker access to refund money

· Flexibility to choose a preferred method of refund

Customers with limited access to banking services will not have to pay a check-cashing fee or wait to receive funds as they often do when receiving a refund check.

“We are pleased to be able to offer our customers a quicker, more convenient way to receive their refunds,” said Gary Spitznogle, AEP Ohio vice president of Regulatory and Finance. “This is another step in enhancing our interactions with our customers and exceeding customer expectations.”

Customers who do not want to use the Visa card can call Citibank and request a check be sent to them instead. Or, customers can opt to have the funds transferred instantly to a checking or savings account. Customers also can call Citibank or use online apps to check card balances.

For questions about this new refund program, customers may call our Customer Solutions Center at 800-672-2231. More information can be found at https://aepohio.com/account/service/SecurityDeposits.aspx#refunds.

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AEP Ohio provides electricity to nearly 1.5 million customers of major AEP subsidiary Ohio Power Company in Ohio. AEP Ohio is based in Gahanna, Ohio, and is a unit of American Electric Power. News and information about AEP Ohio can be found at aepohio.com.

American Electric Power is one of the largest electric utilities in the United States, delivering electricity to more than 5 million customers in 11 states. AEP ranks among the nation’s largest generators of electricity, owning nearly 38,000 megawatts of generating capacity in the U.S. AEP also owns the nation’s largest electricity transmission system, a more than 40,000-mile network that includes more 765-kilovolt extra-high voltage transmission lines than all other U.S. transmission systems combined. AEP’s transmission system directly or indirectly serves about 10 percent of the electricity demand in the Eastern Interconnection, the interconnected transmission system that covers 38 eastern and central U.S. states and eastern Canada, and approximately 11 percent of the electricity demand in ERCOT, the transmission system that covers much of Texas. AEP’s utility units operate as AEP Ohio, AEP Texas, Appalachian Power (in Virginia and West Virginia), AEP Appalachian Power (in Tennessee), Indiana Michigan Power, Kentucky Power, Public Service Company of Oklahoma, and Southwestern Electric Power Company (in Arkansas, Louisiana and east and north Texas). AEP’s headquarters are in Columbus, Ohio. News releases and other information about AEP can be found at aep.com.

MEDIA CONTACT:
AEP Ohio
1-866-641-1151 or 614-883-7999
aepohiomediarelations@aep.com