Attach and Combine Overview
This feature allows a guest to have multiple cards pointing to the same account and user. An example of usage is a husband and wife want to share an account, but for convenience use two cards to accrue points. To use this functionality, the system requires that the feature “Attach Another Card” is set up.
Key things to know about attached cards
At least one of the cards must be REGISTERED to use this feature!
An attach cannot be undone.
Allows a guest use one username and password to be linked with multiple accounts. It is also the first step to combining accounts.
There is only one user so only one set of user information exists. This includes name, address, custom questions, etc…
Because there is only one user, there is only one birthday and only one birthday reward.
To attach a new card it must be ACTIVE. It can be registered OR unregistered. Learn more here: Account Status
“Attach” must be turned on as a feature and then applies to all cards within a merchant.
Cards can be attached even if they are in different templates.
Rules can be configured to run on the Attach transaction. For example, a registration reward can be given when a new card is attached to an existing account.
Key things to know about combined cards
A card must be attached to be combined.
A combine cannot be undone.
Two accounts must be in the same card template to be combined as the system must be sure that the accounts have exactly the same rules and wallets. For more information on rules and wallets, see What are Rules and Wallets?
The ability to combine is configured by card template. For more information on templates see What are Card Templates and Tiers?
When two accounts are combined, the wallet balances are added together into one set of wallets. If card 1 had 10 points and card 2 had 15 points, the remaining card has one point wallet with 25 points after the combine transaction.
Rules can be configured to run during the combine transaction. For example, rewards can be given as if all the points had been earned on a single account.
Both cards are able to add and redeem from the remaining account‘s wallets. Note that there could be some confusion with the redemption of rewards since either card can redeem the same reward.
There is a Main Account which already has two combined cards or is the first account that was enrolled (activated).
Attached cards can be combined into this Main Account.
The rules engine does run on this combine transaction and will give rewards when thresholds are surpassed. For more information on Transaction Types, please see Transaction Types.
The old account is depleted of value with a Close Account transaction and marked as Abandoned.
Liability moves in a combine transaction. The transaction removing value from the abandoned account are charged to the enrollment store of the Main Account.
A comparison between attach and combine
See the diagrams below for a comparison between Attached Cards which keeps two accounts and attributes them to a single user and Combined Cards which combines two accounts together and leaves multiple cards pointing to one account.
What does the guest see?
Customer should navigate to Customer Service>Lookup Card>Account Services>Manage Cards.
Clicking on Manage Cards brings the guest to a new page to manage their cards.
They can Attach Another Card, Combine Accounts and Switch Accounts.
Attach Another Card lets the guest attach an unregistered card to this username and password.
Combine Accounts lets the guest combine the wallet balances into a single account.
Switch Accounts lets the guest switch which account is being displayed on the balance and transaction history pages.
The guest clicks on Attach Another Card.
The guest must enter the card number and registration code. If these are valid and the card is active, the attachment is done.
The guest returns to the Manage Card screen and sees that they have two accounts.
The guest clicks on Combine Account and accounts are combined together.
Impact on movement of money
If the accounts being combined have different enrollment stores there is a movement of liability from the Abandoned Account‘s enrollment store to the Main Account‘s enrollment store.
If decentralized money movement is used then there is a movement of money from the enrollment store of the abandoned account to the enrollment store of the Main Account.
If centralized money movement is used then there is no movement of money. Both the combine and close account are charged to the same store (the main account‘s enrollment store). These two transactions offset each other so there is no net money movement.