Running mass dues billing

Mass billing enables you to process a billing cycle for all customers who match the parameters defined in the selected billing cycle. The system decides which customers to bill by comparing the Paid Thru dates to the renewal Effective Date. iMIS also decides what and how much to bill based on your settings. (See Defining special pricing, Setting up customer types, and Defining product codes). You can run a mass billing cycle to print initial bills, first or second reminders, or run a billing cycle for all print options concurrently.

For example, you enter a Run Date of 9/26/2005 for all print options and the billing reminders that were set on the Billing and Reminder Notices window as:

• Initial Billing Cut Off = 3
• First Reminder Start = -2 and Cut Off = -1
• Second Reminder Start = -3 and Cut Off = -2

iMIS searches the database for customers who match the billing cycle parameters. An initial billing is generated for all customers who have a Paid Thru date before 12/01/2005 (applies to anniversary only). iMIS runs first reminders for unpaid customers whose initial billing was sent between 7/01/2005 and 8/01/2005 and second reminders for those who were initially billed between 6/01/2005 and 7/01/2005.

Warning!  

Before initial billing is run, print a test-billing run and verify the results.

To verify billing of new renewals

Initial billing is an important process within iMIS. It generates and updates a great deal of information in the customer (Name) and billing files. To avoid errors caused by incorrect settings and dates, follow these steps for every initial billing run:

1. Run a billing procedure report.
   1. From Customers, select Generate reports to open the Generate reports window.
   2. Select Rosters from the Report Types list.
   3. Select Member Index with Additional User Fields from the Available Reports list.
   4. Select Options > Additional Fields.
   5. Add Name.PAID_THRU to the first field. For more information about using ad hoc searches, see Using Ad Hoc Searches.

   Example ad hoc search comparison lines:

   Name.PAID_THRU <= '12/31/2001'(one day before Effective Date)
   Name.MEMBER_TYPE = M,CM (customer types included in billing cycle)
   Name.STATUS begins with A (assuming inactive and suspended customers are not included in the billing cycle)

   This should agree with the number of renewal notices that the mass billing procedure will generate. If billing on an anniversary basis, narrow down the Name.PAID_THRU date (for example, Name.PAID_THRU >= 12/01/2001 and Name.PAID_THRU <= 12/31/2001). The search criteria leave out one important field, Renewed Thru, which iMIS billing also considers in determining who needs billing. To get an accurate representation of the customers iMIS will bill, run a test on Renewed Thru. To do this, enter an ad hoc selection with a single calculation line. Enter a SQL statement similar to the following example in the Comparison Value Text area:

   from Name, Name_Fin where Name_Fin.ID = Name.ID
   and Name.PAID_THRU < '1/01/2002'
   and Name_Fin.RENEWED_THRU < '1/01/2002'
   and Name.MEMBER_TYPE in ('M','CM')
   and Name.STATUS like 'A%'

   If the results vary from the first report to the second, there may be a problem with the Name_Fin.RENEWED_THRU date. iMIS will assume the customer has already been billed. See Billing run troubleshooting.

2. Back up your iMIS data.
3. Run the billing.

Note: Print the initial bills when you generate the billing renewal data. Be careful to use the correct Effective Date. You can override the Run Date if needed.

4. Verify the number of customers billed. Check the number of customers billed against your customer report.
5. (optional) Run the Open Items by Name report. The report's Begin Date and End Date should reflect the same Run Date as the renewal-billing run. This report will give you the count of customers billed.
6. Investigate discrepancies between the reports produced (who should be billed versus who was actually billed).

To run initial mass dues billings

Warning!  

If you want to override the Effective Date, make the change after selecting a billing cycle. If you change the Effective Date and then select a billing cycle, the Effective Date reverts to the default.

1. From Billing, select Process billing to open the Process billing window.
2. Click New.
3. Select the Renewals Billing Options. The default Effective Date field automatically displays. Select Renewals to process new renewals.
4. Select a billing cycle to process that was previously created in the Set up billing cycles window.
5. Select the Printing Options
6. (optional) Override the Run Date.
7. (optional) Override the Effective Date.
8. (optional) Select the Additional Options.
9. Click Run to process the billing run.

To rebill to correct a mass dues billing

iMIS provides a Rebill feature that enables you to correct a previous mass billing. Rebill a mass run if:

• The pricing table originally used for the renewal bill run was incorrect; or
• The original dues billing did not include a line item.

For example, rebill the sample initial dues bill discussed in To run initial mass dues billings.

Note: A renewal billing can be combined with a rebilling.

1. Correct the reason for the rebill.
• If you need to add a product to the Billing Cycle, see Creating Billing Cycles.
• If you need to change the pricing of a product, see Setting up customer types, or Defining special pricing.
2. From Billing, select Process billing to open the Process billing window.
3. Click New.
4. Select Rebill to change or correct a billing run generated previously.
5. Select a billing cycle to process.
6. Select the Printing Options.
7. Enter the original Run Date range in the Begin Rebill Date and End Rebill Date fields.
8. Click Run to process the billing run.

Note: See Billing run troubleshooting.