Customer Change 

Use

You use the customer change function to transfer the utility contracts of a contract account, including any resulting receivables, from one business partner to another.

This can, for example, be necessary when merging business partners.

The following functions are possible:

·        Create customer change

·        Process customer change subsequently

·        Reverse customer change

·        Transfer post open items due to customer change

Integration

You can use the function SAP Utilities ® Customer Service ® Process Execution ® Move-In/Out and then the menu option Others ® Create / Reverse Customer Changeto call the customer change.

Use the methods for the BOR object MOVEINOUT to integrate the customer change in the Customer Interaction Center (CIC) or the front office. Transfer the parameter OK code with the value “…”.

Prerequisites

Before you can a execute customer change, the contracts to be transferred must have been invoiced at least once.

If you also want to transfer budget billing plans, the budget billing plan items must all be open. If necessary, you must reset all clearings and set the accrued receivables to payments on account. Therefore, we recommend that you execute the customer change as close as possible to the last bill in order to avoid this preparatory work.

Customizing

You define Customer Change Reasons in Customizing for SAP Utilities under Customer Service ® Process Execution ® Move-In/Out ® Define Reasons for Customer Change.

You can also choose whether or not the following objects are also transferred during the customer change:

·        Security deposits

·        Budget billing plans

·        Open items

·        Dunning information

 Also see the Customizing documentation for the individual components and the F1 field help.

Features

When a customer change is created, the system terminates the transfer contract using a move-out, and creates a new contract by means of a move-in. The move-out date is set as the end of the billing period of the most recently invoiced billing document belonging to the transfer contract.

In addition, you can append an actual move-out date to the move-out, and an actual move-in date to the move-in. This enables you to document when the move-out customer actually vacated the apartment, and when the move-in customer occupied it. If this data becomes valid at a future date, the changes to the business partner and contract account data of the move-out customer are stored as scheduled changes, with the actual move-out date as the validity date. For the move-in customer the changes to business partner and contract account data are also stored as scheduled changes, but with the actual move-in date as the validity date.

When you create a move-out, an adjustment reversal of the most recent billing document takes place for the transfer contract and a new billing document is created with the value 08 (Customer Change). This billing document contains the billing amount “0”. In addition, the most recent billed meter readings are copied when the move-in is created. Note that constellations in the rate structure can have the result that the billing documents from the adjustment reversal do not have the amount “0”.

Depending on the Customizing settings, no new meter reading results are entered. Instead, the last billed meter readings are copied when the move-in is created (see OSS note 503243).

When you save the move-in document, the open items of the transfer contract can be posted to the target contract created as a result of the move-in (this depends on the Customizing settings described above). Note that is only possible if transfer and target contract have the same company code. Open items that have already been cleared are not transfer posted. You use the Transfer Items transaction (FP40) for this purpose.

Depending on the Customizing setting you made previously, security deposits and dunning information can be transferred.

Interest history and supplements are not copied during transfer of the open costs.

Budget billing plans are deactivated by the move-out, once you have set the payment on account. Depending on the Customizing settings, a new budget billing plan is created from the deactivated budget billing plan when you save the move-in document. You then allocate the credit payments using the account maintenance.

The customer change assigns a posting block to the transfer contracts. You can display this block in the move-out document. You can change the block using methods ReleaseFicaLock and SetFicaLock of BOR object MOVEOUTDOC.

Constraints

·        Open items that have been sent to a collection agency cannot be transferred.

·        The returns history is not transferred to the new target business partner.

·        The interest history and supplements are not copied when you transfer the open items.

·        The business partners credit rating data is not transferred.

Alternatives if customer change is not possible

If a contract has not yet been invoiced, proceed as follows:

·        Reverse the move-in document: Execute move-in with the correct business partner. You can use the move-in document as a template.

·        Create an intermediate bill.

·        Wait for the next bill and then execute the customer change.