NIPSCO NiSource Payment not late, disconnected anyway. Won't reconnect without paying fees Merrillville, Indiana

My NIPSCO bill was generated on 8/13/2010 stating that I had a past due amount of 266.53, total amount due of 447.84 and 181.31 due on 9/2/2010. Meter reading date was between the 13th and 15th.

 Nipsco's customer service manual states that they MUST send a disconnection notice and they can't disconnect until 14 days have passed from the issue of the disconnection notice.

 What I got on the 13th is a regular bill with no disconnect notice. There is no disconnect notice on my online account, and no other information since the 13th.

When calling NIPSCO I was greeted with general rudeness and standoffish attitudes. I asked why my electricity has been disconnected and the only response was "We sent the disconnection notice out."

NIPSCO could not tell me the date the disconnect notice was issued or when it's deadline was. I requested they look into my account to verify the disconnection or even the existence of the disconnection notice.

I was told they couldn't do that and if I wanted my electricity back on I would have to pay the total amount due from the 13th, the total amount due on the 2nd (it isn't even the 2nd yet), a $200 deposit, and a $45 reconnection fee.

Is NIPSCO that hard up for the cash?