3 Account Information
You can view and change your customers' account information by using Oracle Communications Billing Care.
To work with accounts and perform some basic tasks, see the following topics:
Viewing and Changing Account Information
An account can have multiple contacts, and each contact can have multiple phone numbers.
The first account contact appears in the account bar. You can see any additional contact information and add, change, or delete contact information on the Account Profile dialog box.
Note:
The first contact cannot be deleted. The name and address in this contact are often also used for the account's billing information. If you change the contact information, you might also need to change the billing information. To do this, see "Payments".
To view or change account information, do any of the following:
-
From the Actions menu, select Account, and then select Account Profile.
The Account Profile dialog box appears.
-
To add a new contact, click New Contact and enter the customer information.
Note:
Enter a pre-existing email address, not one associated with a service the customer is purchasing now.
-
To change existing contact information, update the information in any of the contact fields.
Note:
If you enter a company name, that name is displayed.
If the company name is blank, the first and last names of the first contact in the account profile are displayed.
-
To change the phone number information, select the type and enter the new number.
Note:
Each phone type can be used by only one phone number.
-
In Security, enter new text to change the hint or answer.
For more information, see "Changing Customer Security Hints and Answers".
-
For Customer Type, select a new value.
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For Language, select a new value.
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For Organization Hierarchy Type, select a new value.
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For Monitor Group Balance, select the check box to enable this account to be the owner of a payment responsible real-time credit enforcement (PR_RTCE) balance monitoring group.
-
Click Save.
See "Financial Setup" for information on updating payment, bill unit, or tax information.
Related Tasks
Changing Customer Security Hints and Answers
To change customer security hints and answers:
-
From the Actions menu, select Accounts, and then select Account Profile.
The Account Profile dialog box appears.
-
In the Security section, enter new text to change the hint or answer.
-
To delete a hint and answer pair, click the minus icon.
-
Click Save.
Changing the Account Status
If an account is inactive or closed, that information appears in the account bar.
Changing the status of an account affects services, products, and hierarchical groups. For more information, see:
To change the account status:
-
From the Actions menu, click Account status.
The Account Status dialog box appears.
-
From the Status list, select an account status.
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Do one of the following:
-
Keep the default Effective immediately.
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Select Defer the action until, and enter the date.
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Select Backdate the action to, and enter the date.
-
-
From the Account Status Change list, select the reason.
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(Optional) Enter a note.
-
Click Save.
Products and Account Status
Making an account inactive makes all active products in the account inactive. Reactivating an inactive account reactivates all products that were active when the account was active. Products that were inactive when the account was active remain inactive.
Closing an account cancels all the account's products and services. Reactivating a closed account does not reinstate the canceled products. To regain the canceled products, the account must repurchase the deals that contain them.
Individual products and services can be made inactive or terminated without affecting an account's other products and services. See "Working with No-Contract Subscriptions" for more information about making products inactive or removing them from a customer's account.
Hierarchical Groups and Account Status
By default, changing the status of the parent account's services in a hierarchical account group changes the status of all child accounts' services in the group, independent of their type of bill unit (paying or nonpaying).
See "Organization Hierarchies" for more information on managing organizational hierarchies.
Working with Deferred Actions
The Deferred Actions list the account, service, and collections related scheduled actions. For example, activation or deactivation of a service or closure of an account at a later date. You can edit, execute, and delete the deferred actions.
To work with the deferred actions:
-
From the Actions menu, click Deferred Actions.
The Deferred Actions dialog box appears. You can also navigate to the Deferred Actions dialog box from:
-
The Deferred Actions link in the Account banner tile.
This link includes only the number of pending deferred actions. This link is visible only when the pending deferred actions are available.
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The Subscriptions cards. See "Deferring Actions for a Service".
-
-
(Optional) From the Type list, select the type of deferred action you want to perform. By default, All is selected.
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(Optional) From the Status list, select one of the options. By default, Pending is selected.
-
Select the deferred action to perform any of the following actions. These actions are available based on the user privileges:
-
Edit: Allows you to reschedule the deferred action.
-
Execute: Allows you to execute the action. When you execute, if the execution is successful, the status of the action changes to Done. If the execution fails, the status of the action changes to Error.
-
Delete: Allows you to remove the deferred action.
Note:
For collections related deferred actions, you can only execute or delete an action.
-
Editing Deferred Actions
To edit deferred actions:
Note:
You can edit only the deferred actions that are in the Pending status.
-
From the Actions menu, click Deferred Actions.
The Deferred Actions dialog box appears. You can also navigate to the Deferred Actions dialog box from:
-
The Deferred Actions link in the Account banner tile.
This link includes only the number of pending deferred actions. This link is visible only when the pending deferred actions are available.
-
The subscriptions cards. See "Deferring Actions for a Service".
-
-
Select the account or service level deferred action.
-
Click the pencil icon.
-
In the Scheduled field, enter a date or select a date from the calendar.
-
Click Save.
Executing Deferred Actions
To execute deferred actions:
-
From the Actions menu, click Deferred Actions.
The Deferred Actions dialog box appears. You can also navigate to the Deferred Actions dialog box from:
-
The Deferred Actions link in the Account banner tile.
This link includes only the number of pending deferred actions. This link is visible only when the pending deferred actions are available.
-
The Subscriptions cards. See "Deferring Actions for a Service".
-
-
Select the account or service level deferred action.
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Click the execute icon.
Note:
You can edit only the deferred actions that are in the Pending status.
After the execution, the Pending status changes to:
-
Done, if the action successfully executes.
-
Error, if the action does not execute successfully.
-
Deleting Deferred Actions
To delete deferred actions:
-
From the Actions menu, click Deferred Actions.
The Deferred Actions dialog box appears. You can also navigate to the Deferred Actions dialog box from:
-
The Deferred Actions link in the Account banner tile.
This link includes only the number of pending deferred actions. This link is visible only when the pending deferred actions are available.
-
The Subscriptions cards. See "Deferring Actions for a Service".
-
-
Select the account or service level deferred action.
-
Click the delete icon.
After the deletion is successful, the deleted action is removed and you cannot view the deleted action and its status. If you cannot delete the pending action, Pending Undeletable appears in the Status list.
Working with the Newsfeed
The Newsfeed shows a chronological list of activity for an account, such as the purchases made, the payments submitted, and the disputes opened.
You can do the following with the newsfeed:
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View the history of all activity for an account and its bill units.
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Filter the list of newsfeed entries to show only accounts receivable (A/R) actions, payments, charges, or account-level changes.
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Search for newsfeed entries by bill number or payment ID.
You can select a newsfeed entry to open a dialog box or section with more details about the activity. Depending on the type of activity, you can add a comment or perform a related action.
Displaying an Account's History
To display an account's history in the newsfeed:
-
On the account page, click the Home tab.
-
Select the Account History area and then click the Newsfeed link.
The Newsfeed appears on the right. All newsfeed entries for the account are listed by default.
Finding Newsfeed Entries
To find entries in the newsfeed by bill number or payment ID:
-
On the account page, click the Home tab.
-
Select the Account History area and then click the Newsfeed link.
The Newsfeed appears on the right. The complete list of newsfeed entries are displayed by default.
-
To list only the entries for a specific category, click A/R, Payments, Charges, or Account.
-
Click the Search icon:
The Newsfeed Search appears.
-
In the Find list, do one of the following:
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To search by bill number, select Bill Number and then enter a bill number.
-
To search by payment ID, select Payment ID and then enter a payment ID.
-
-
Click Search.
The Newsfeed displays the search results.
Tip:
To clear the search criteria and see all search results again, click the Search icon and then click the Reset link.
Newsfeed
The Newsfeed provides the history for an account and its bill units in list form.
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
|
Categories |
The top row lists the main categories. Click a category link to view entries for that category:
|
|
Click this icon to search for Newsfeed entries by bill number or payment ID. |
|
Date |
The date the activity occurred. |
|
Icon |
Indicates the type of activity. For example, a shopping cart icon indicates a purchase, and a dollar sign indicates a payment. |
|
Type |
For the category, the particular types of entries. Click a link to access details about the entry and, depending on the type, comment or perform a related action. |
|
Amount |
If the type involves currency, the amount appears. |
|
Details |
Summary of the entry. |
|
Show More |
If there are more than 50 records, this link appears. |
Working with Account-Level Notes
Account-level notes consolidate all comments that CSRs have entered for an account, allowing you to easily track and view all interactions that have occurred with your customers.
Each note includes the name of the CSR that posted it, the date that it was entered, the note's comments, and any follow-up comments in the note's thread.
You can do the following with account-level notes:
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Add a note to an account
-
Add follow-up comments to a note's thread
-
View the notes and follow-up comments associated with an account
To maintain the integrity of account-level notes, you cannot modify or delete any note or follow-up comment. You also cannot post an empty note or follow-up comment. Billing Care generates an error message if you attempt to post one.
Creating an Account-Level Note
To create an account-level note:
-
On the account page, click the Home tab.
-
Click the Notes area.
The Notes page appears on the right. See "Notes Page" for details.
-
In the Notes header bar, click the Add Notes icon:
-
Enter your comments.
Note:
Ensure that your comments are correct before proceeding. You cannot edit or delete a note after it is posted.
-
Click Post.
Your note is added.
Adding Comments to a Note's Thread
To add a comment to a note's thread:
-
On the account page, click the Home tab and then select the Notes area.
The Notes page appears on the right. See "Notes Page" for details.
-
Select the note and then click Comment.
-
Enter your comments.
Note:
Ensure that your comments are correct before proceeding. You cannot edit or delete a comment after it is posted.
-
Click Post.
Your comment is added to the note's thread.
Viewing Account-Level Notes
The Notes page lists all notes that have been posted to an account, listed from the newest to the oldest.
The Notes page shows the following for each note:
-
The name of the CSR who posted the note.
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The date the note was posted.
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The number of comments associated with the note. This number includes the original note plus any follow-up comments.
A number is displayed only when the note contains follow-up comments.
-
The first three lines of the note's comments.
You can select a note to view its full contents.
To view the notes for an account:
-
On the account page, click the Home tab.
The Notes area displays the number of notes created in the past 24 hours and in the past two months. If the account does not have any notes, it displays No recent notes.
-
Select the Notes area.
The Notes page appears on the right. See "Notes Page" for details.
Notes Page
The Notes page lists all notes that CSRs have entered for an account.
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
|
|
Click this icon to add a note to an account. |
|
Comment area |
The note's comments. |
|
Post |
Click this to post your note or follow-up comment. |
|
Cancel |
Click this to cancel your note or follow-up comment. |
|
Name |
The name of the CSR who entered the note or follow-up comment. |
|
Date |
The date the note or a follow-up comment was posted. |
 |
The number of comments associated with the note. This number includes the original note plus any follow-up comments. This icon appears only when a note contains a thread. |
|
Comment |
Click this to add a follow-up comment to a note's thread. |
Working with Credit Limits, Credit Floors, and Thresholds
The currency and noncurrency credit limits are displayed in the Balances section in the Home tab.
You set a credit limit to control the charges or noncurrency resources that a customer can accumulate. You can also configure a credit limit to be ignored.
After customers reach a noncurrency credit limit, the resource stops accumulating in the customer's account.
After customers reach a currency credit limit, they cannot use the service.
If you set a credit floor, a notification event is generated when the credit limit threshold is reached. If you do not set a credit floor, no notification event is generated. For currency resources, the credit floor is 0. The credit floor can be either static or dynamic (determined by the granted amounts from the sub-balances that are valid for the current cycle for the resource).
The thresholds represent a percentage of the credit limit amount or a percentage of the difference between the credit limit and the credit floor (if you selected a credit floor) amounts. Each selected threshold triggers an alert. You set the credit thresholds to notify customers when the resource usage reaches the specified amount or limit. You can specify the threshold either:
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As a fixed threshold value, such as $100 or 30 minutes.
-
As a percentage value of the credit limit, such as 90%. For example, if the credit limit is $100 and the threshold is 90%, the threshold amount is reached when the customer has a balance of $90; that is, when the customer has used 90% of the resource.
Setting up Credit Limit, Floor, and Thresholds
To set credit limit, floor, and thresholds for currency or noncurrency resources:
-
On the account page, click the Home tab.
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In the Account History Section, click Balances.
If the account or bill unit has multiple balances for multiple services, the Balance list appears; otherwise, the single balance appears.
-
Select the resource for which you want to set the credit limit, credit floor, and credit thresholds.
-
Enter or select the values for the following:
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Limit allowed. (Optional) To set a credit limit, enter a value. To keep the credit limit as unlimited, leave it empty.
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Dynamic Floor. (Optional) If selected, the credit floor will be determined dynamically, and the value for Floor cannot be set.
-
Floor. (Optional) Enter a lower credit limit amount for the balance. This value cannot be greater than the Fixed value. If you do not enter a value, the text box displays the value as Not Set.
-
Fixed Thresholds. (Optional) Enter the fixed threshold value at which to send the notification to customers. This value must be between the floor and the credit limit.
-
Thresholds. (Optional) Select the desired percentage value. This value must be between the floor and the credit limit.
-
Outstanding amount due to insufficient credit. Displays the amount the customer currently owes beyond the credit limit.
-
Credit limit check. Select whether to enforce or override the credit limit.
-
Roll Up Credit Limit. (Optional) Select this option to add this account's credit limit to the parent's bill unit in a payment responsible real-time credit enforcement balance monitor group.
Note:
This field appears only when this bill unit is a child member of a payment responsible real-time credit enforcement balance monitor group.
Tip:
You can change validity dates for noncurrency resources.
When spending reaches the selected percentage or the fixed threshold value, a notification event is generated.
-
-
Click OK.
Credit Limit, Floor, and Thresholds Dialog Box
Use this dialog box to set the required values for credit limit, floor, and thresholds for currency or noncurrency resources.
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| Limit allowed |
Enter the credit limit to control the charges or noncurrency resources a customer can accumulate. This value can be negative. |
| Dynamic Floor |
Select this option to enable the dynamic credit floor. This determines the credit floor using the granted amounts from the sub-balances that are valid for the current cycle for the resource (for example, minutes). |
| Floor |
Enter the lower credit limit amount for the balance. This value can be a negative value, but it cannot be greater than the fixed value. |
| Fixed Thresholds |
Enter the value at which you want the notification event to be generated. |
| Thresholds |
Select a percentage at which you want the notification event to be generated. |
| Outstanding amount due to insufficient credit |
Displays the amount the customer currently owes beyond the credit limit. For example, if the customer's bill is $500 and you set Limit Allowed to $300, this field displays $200. |
| Credit limit check |
Select whether to enforce or override the credit limit.
Values are:
The default value is Enforce credit limit. |
| Roll Up Credit Limit |
Select this option to add this account's credit limit to the parent's bill unit in a payment responsible real-time credit enforcement balance monitor group. Note: This field appears only when this bill unit is a child member of a payment responsible real-time credit enforcement balance monitor group. |
Finding a Bill
To find a bill (including refunded bills):
-
On the account page, click the Bills tab.
The bill in progress appears by default.
After the billing cycle completes, charges and other billing-related items of the wholesale child accounts in the hierarchy are rolled up to the wholesale parent account, and the total due for this period in the wholesale child accounts shows 0.
The Bills tab of the wholesale parent account shows the last generated bill. If it is the first billing cycle and wholesale child bills are in progress, the No bills to display message appears in the Bills tab of the wholesale parent account.
-
To select another bill by its date, click Switch Bills.
The bill in progress and up to 12 billing cycles are listed. You can view the bills that are generated before and after moving the account to the hierarchy.
-
If the account has multiple bill units, select the bill unit.
Tip:
You can also find a bill by clicking its indicator in the Bills graph and clicking Details in the dialog box that appears.
Finding a Specific Bill
To find a specific bill:
-
Click Search.
The Search dialog box appears.
-
From the Search list, select Bills.
Bill Information dialog box appears. See "Search Dialog Box" for more information.
-
Enter the bill number that you want to search.
Tip:
Use an asterisk (*) as a wildcard to match one or more characters at the start or end of words or numbers.
-
Click Search.
-
Billing Care displays search results on the right side of the Search dialog box.
-
Select a bill, and click Open Bill.
Tip:
You can also open a bill by double clicking the bill in the results list.
Billing Care displays the selected bill.
Finding Bills by Date Range
To find bills by date range:
-
Click Search.
The Search dialog box appears.
-
From the Search list, select Bills.
Bill Information dialog box appears.
-
In the date range, select the From and To date range in which you want to view bills.
-
Select the number of bills in a billing cycle.
-
Select the From and To date range in which to view bills.
Note:
Select the Bills with zero balance option to view bills without any balance.
-
-
Click Search.
Finding Last Generated Bills
To find the last generated bills:
-
Click Search.
The Search dialog box appears.
-
From the Search list, select Bills.
Bill Information dialog box appears. See "Search Dialog Box" for more information.
-
In the Last field, enter the number of last generated bills that you want to search. By default, 1 appears. You can search a maximum of 25 last generated bills.
Note:
Select the Bills with zero balance option to view bills without any balance.
-
Click Search.
Viewing and Adding Subscriber Preferences
Note:
Whether subscriber preferences appear depends on your system configuration.
Subscriber preferences show how and when a customer wants to receive your company's messages. By default, Billing Care asks for your customer's preferred language and delivery method, but your company may have added custom fields for collecting additional information.
To view, add, or modify an account's subscriber preferences:
-
From the Actions menu, select Account, and then select Subscriber Preferences.
The Subscriber Preferences dialog box appears and displays the account preferences as well as all services associated with the account.
Tip:
If more than 20 services are associated with the account, you can filter the list of services. To do so, click the Filter link. See "Filter Services Dialog Box" for details.
-
From the left side of the dialog box, select the level of preferences you want to see:
-
To view account preferences, click Account.
-
To view the preferences for a service, click the service's name.
The preferences for the account or service appears.
-
-
To add or change any preferences, click Edit.
-
In the Language list, select the language for any messages sent to the customer.
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In the Channel field, select one or more delivery methods for sending messages to the customer: Email, SMS, or IVR.
-
In the NotificationsOptOutList list, select the notification message types the customer wants to unsubscribe from.
-
In the NotificationsOptInList list, select the notification message types the customer wants to subscribe to receive.
-
Enter your customer's preferences for any custom fields that your company has added.
-
Click Apply to save your changes.
Filter Services Dialog Box
Use the Filter Services dialog box to narrow the list of services displayed in the Subscriber Preferences dialog box.
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
|
Bill Unit |
Select the name of the bill unit to display. |
|
Service ID |
Enter a service ID to display. |
|
by Service Type |
Select a service type from the list of services in the account. |
|
Clear Filter |
Click Clear Filter to remove all criteria you entered into the dialog box. |
|
Update |
Click Update to view all services that meet your filter criteria. |
Viewing Bill Details
View detailed information for a selected bill using the My Charges area in the Bills tab. This area provides information about bill item account-level charges and service level charges, allows adjustment to individual bill items, and provides access to a bill's invoice.
After the billing cycle is completed, if you make any event adjustments in the wholesale child account, the adjusted amount is rolled up to the wholesale parent account. It shows the total adjusted amount, including the tax amount, in the wholesale parent account. For example, if you make an event adjustment of $1.00, 10% is added as the tax amount, and $1.10 is shown as the total A/R actions amount in the wholesale parent account.
Note:
Charges in bills containing unsettled disputes are shown in the bill detail.
To view detailed account or service level charge information on a bill in My Charges:
-
Find the bill. See "Finding a Bill" for more information.
-
In the My Charges area, do one of the following:
-
To view account-level charges, click Charges not related to services.
-
To view service level charges, click the service listed under Service Charges.
Note:
Once the bill is generated for a wholesale child account, you cannot perform the following actions:
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Bill adjustment
-
Bill write-off
-
Item adjustment
-
Item dispute
-
Item write-off
You cannot perform these actions for a wholesale child account, irrespective of billing:
-
Account adjustment
-
Account write-off
-
Bill information write-off
-
Payments
-
Refunds
-
-
View events related to a charge by clicking on the charge amount link. Clicking a charge amount displays all the events included in the charge.
-
Click Show Charge Changes to view individual charge change details, such as one-time discounts.
-
To view a bill's invoice, click View Invoice.
-
(Optional) To adjust a bill item charge, click the charge's action menu and select New Adjustment.
Viewing Refunded Bills
To view previously refunded bills, use one of the following options:
-
In the Bills tab, select the refunded bill.
-
In the A/R News Feed, click the action with a type of Refund.
-
In the Home tab, Bills chart, click the red dot for the refunded bill.
Related Tasks
Viewing Account Balances
The Balances area shows what the customer owes and what credits the customer has. There are two main types of balances:
-
Currency balances, which are shown in green and have a currency symbol. The balance represents money owed for the services associated with the balance. If there is a credit limit for the amount owed, that is shown with the balance.
-
Noncurrency balances, which are shown in blue and do not have a currency symbol. Noncurrency balances represent tokens, minutes, loyalty points, and so on that are associated with the service.
To view the balances for an account:
-
On the account page, click the Home tab, and then select the Account History section or the section for the bill unit whose balances you want to view.
If the account or bill unit has multiple balances, the Balance list appears; otherwise, a single balance appears.
-
In the Balances list, select the services whose balances you want to view.
The names of the services and the related balances appear below the list.
-
(Optional) Click a noncurrency balance to view further details.
Related Tasks
Viewing an Invoice
To view an invoice:
-
Select a bill.
For more information, see "Finding a Bill".
-
In the Bills section with a bill open, do one of the following:
-
From the Actions menu, select View Invoice PDF.
-
Under My Charges or under Charges from Other Accounts, select the charges to view, and click View Invoice.
-
Working with Events
You can view the charges for usage events included in the bill.
To view events:
-
On the account page, click the Bills tab.
-
Select the bill you want to work with.
To locate a bill, see "Finding a Bill".
-
In the Service Charges area of the Bills section, select a service.
The Charges by service page appears.
-
Select a charge by clicking on the amount.
The Events screen appears, containing a list of events in the charge.
-
(Optional) Change the events shown by doing any of the following:
-
Sort by Date.
-
Sort by Destination Network.
-
Limit by date:
-
Click Search.
-
Enter dates for From and To.
-
Click Search.
-
-
Limit by phone number:
-
Click Search.
-
Enter a Phone number.
-
Click Search.
-
-
Limit the displayed:
-
Select the relevant events.
-
Change Show all to Show Selected.
-
-
Select the events to hide:
-
Select the non-relevant events.
-
Change Show all to Show unselected.
-
-
-
Do one of the following:
-
Select an event and click Adjust selected.
-
Click Close.
-
Tip:
You can view event adjustment details by clicking its indicator in the A/R actions graph, and in the dialog box that appears, clicking Details.
Related Tasks
Working with an Account in Collections
If an account is in collections, collections information appears in the account bar. If the account has multiple bill units, the name of the bill unit in collections appears. You can:
-
View the two next scheduled actions.
-
View the number of days the account is past due and the amount that is owed.
Click to see the details of all past due items.
-
View the minimum payment required to stop the collections process.
Click to make a payment.
-
View all collections actions and bill units in collections.
Click the View in collections link to view the bill units in collections.
If more than two actions are scheduled, the All Collections Actions link appears. Click this link to view each action's scheduled actions, notes, and history.
Related Tasks