My power company does this too.What really gets me, is that there's a fee to use an automated phone payment system as well, even if you don't have to speak to anyone.
In some contries in Europe most of the CS and TS phone numbers (95%) are toll numbers (not cheap either) and is a covert way to extort revenue. If your service goes down (even if is their fault) or need to change personal data you´ll pay just to talk to them. -- One can only speak in tongs so many times before landing on a perfectly working spell that would turn anyone in to a frog.
