13Billing Siebel Energy
Billing in Siebel Energy
This chapter describes the procedures for handling customer inquiries about their invoices. It includes the following topics:
Generating Credit, Fraud, and Usage Information in Siebel Energy
About Accessing or Updating Billing Information in Siebel Energy
Process of Accessing or Updating Billing Information in Siebel Energy (End User)
Process of Entering Payment Against an Outstanding Balance in Siebel Energy (End User)
Process of Making Payment Arrangements in Siebel Energy (End User)
About Billing in Siebel Energy
The procedures described in this chapter are usually performed by customer service representatives (CSRs). Using Siebel Energy, CSRs can retrieve past invoices, current unbilled charges, and other invoice details. CSRs can also arrange payment plans, record payments against an outstanding balance, or request adjustments to the customer’s records in the event of an incorrect bill.
Administrators involved with billing benefit from reading this chapter. It describes how your CSRs access billing information and update billing accounts. After becoming familiar with the end-user procedures, you can customize the software to fit your company’s needs.
Billing processes are integrated with an external billing application that Siebel Energy accesses to retrieve information, such as the customer’s last statement. That information is stored temporarily in Siebel database tables.
Performance of the billing screens depends on both the configuration and speed of retrieval from the external billing application. Configurators can set up Siebel Energy so that all messages are sent and received from the back-office application in real-time or batch mode. The results of these messages can also be stored in Siebel Energy database tables, allowing CSRs to resolve them in real-time.
Your company is responsible for performing the integration of Siebel Energy with billing applications. For more information, see Overview: Siebel Enterprise Application Integration. For information about setting up profiles that are used to run credit ratings, record billing preferences, or store tax exemption information, see Profiles in Siebel Energy.
Scenario for Using Billing in Siebel Energy
This topic gives one example of how billing might be used. You might use billing differently, depending on your business model.
A CSR at an energy provider receives a call from a business customer. The customer has just received his company’s December invoice for electric service and believes that his company was overcharged for monthly usage.
The CSR verifies the caller's identity and then accesses the customer's billing information, primarily maintained in an external billing application. With the Siebel application, the CSR can access billing information as if it were stored locally.
The CSR finds the December invoice at the start of the customer’s invoice list. She brings up an image of the invoice and notices that the customer has been charged $300 for off-peak demand.
The CSR wants to review the electric usage and demand history to confirm the company used this much power. She first retrieves the customer's usage information for the December billing period. She then analyzes the usage and informs the customer that a demand spike occurred on December 20. She also checks to see the other invoices for previous months to determine whether this demand spike is consistent. It is not. The customer realizes that December 20 was the day of his company's holiday party and this party was the cause of the excess usage.
The customer asks to check his usage for the current month to make sure there are no unexpected surprises in the next month's invoice. The CSR reviews the unbilled charges and reports that there is no unusual usage.
While looking at the invoice details, however, she notices that the customer is being charged a city tax, from which his company is exempt. The customer has been paying this amount for the last few months. To reimburse him for the error, she can enter an adjustment request against either the entire invoice or specifically against a line item in that invoice. She decides to associate the request with the invoice line item in this case.
She enters the amount of the tax and explains the reason for the request. She then submits the adjustment for processing by the external billing application. If it is accepted, then this adjustment amount is credited immediately to the balance of the account of the customer and is printed on the customer’s next invoice.
Before she forgets, she accesses the customer's exemption profile and makes a note that he is exempt from city tax, so that he is not incorrectly charged in the future.
The customer also wants to pay his outstanding balance. The CSR finds the most recent invoice, which is for the month of January. She creates a payment against the invoice, enters the customer's credit card information, and submits the payment for processing by the external billing application.
Before hanging up, the customer has one last request. He wants to start receiving invoices by email. The CSR goes to his billing profile, selects the appropriate Bill Media, and enters his email address. The customer thanks him for his time and hangs up.
After lunch, the CSR receives a phone call from another customer, who needs to arrange a payment plan. His recent invoice was considerably higher than normal, so he wants to spread out the payment over the next three months. After the CSR verifies that his credit is still good, she enters the payment arrangement request and notes the special circumstances. The external billing application processes the request and approves it in a few moments. The CSR informs the customer that his request has been accepted and that he can see that additional amount in the next three invoices.
Verify caller’s identity.
Select invoice.
View invoice details.
View usage details.
Request invoice adjustment.
View request outcome.
Request payment arrangement plan.
View request outcome.
Update Profiles affecting invoices.
Make payment against outstanding balance.
Request duplicate invoice.
Record customer’s decision about outcome.
Billing system adjusts invoice.
Generating Credit, Fraud, and Usage Information in Siebel Energy
Siebel Energy contains a view for administrators that simulates an external billing application. From that view, you can create credit, fraud, and usage details for a billing account. End users do not have access to the view.
To generate credit, fraud, and usage information
Navigate to the Billing Data Administration screen, then the Billing view.
In the Billing Accounts list, drill down on the name of the account.
Click the Credit Alerts, Fraud Alerts, or Usage Detail view tabs.
In the appropriate list, add a record, and complete the necessary fields.
Note: For Load Factor field in the Usage Detail view, you must enter the value as a percentage and not as a decimal value (multiply the value for used KWh or for available kWh by 100%). For example, if you normally enter .50 as a load factor, then enter 50 to make sure that the data appears properly throughout Siebel Energy.
Setting Up the Invoice Image Feature in Siebel Energy
In the Siebel application, end users can view the image of a customer’s bill from the external billing application, if the administrator sets up this feature.
Bill Statement Host
When end users click the Invoice Image view tab of the Invoices screen, the invoice image that appears comes from the Bill Statement host. This image is not stored in the Siebel application. Complete the procedure in this topic to set up the integration between the Bill Statement host and the Siebel application.
To configure the integration with the Bill Statement host
Navigate to the Administration - Integration screen, then the WI Symbolic URL List view.
In the Host Administration list, select the host with a value of BillStatementHost in the Virtual Name field.
In the Name field for this host, enter the name of your invoice host.
From the Show drop-down list, select Symbolic URL Administration.
In the Symbolic URL list, complete the following steps:
Select the record with a value of BillStatement in the Name field.
Note: BillStatement is the name of the control defined in Siebel Tools. For more information, see Using Siebel Tools.- For this record, complete the fields in the following table.
Field Comments URL
Type the URL in which the bill image appears.
Host Name
Select the name of the invoice host that you enter in Step 3.
Fixup Name
Select the fix up name. A value of InsideApplet displays the image in the current applet. A value of OutsideApplication displays the image in a new pop-up window.
Restart the application.
The invoice image is now obtained from the Bill Statement URL.
Web Center Content Host
When end users click the View Invoice button in the Bills view tab of the Billing Profile screen, the invoice image that appears comes from the Web Center Content (WCC) host. This image is not stored in the Siebel application. Complete the procedure in this topic to set up the integration between the WCC host and the Siebel application.
To configure the integration with the Web Center Content host
Navigate to the Administration - Integration screen, then the WI Symbolic URL List view.
In the Host Administration list, select the host with a value of wccserver in the Virtual Name field.
In the Name field for this host, enter the name of your invoice host.
From the Show drop-down list, select Symbolic URL Administration.
In the Symbolic URL list, complete the following steps:
Select the record with a value of WCC Invoice Popup Applet in the Name field.
Note: WCC Invoice Popup Applet is the name of the control defined in Siebel Tools. For more information, see Using Siebel Tools.For this record, complete the fields in the following table.
Field Comments URL
Type the URL in which the bill image appears.
Host Name
Select the name of the invoice host that you enter in Step 3.
Change the values for the records in the Symbolic URL Arguments list to accommodate your WCC host.
For example, if the user ID and password for the WCC host are the same as the user ID and password for the Siebel application, then change the Argument Value field from UserLoginid to UserSiebelLoginid for the record with a value of j_username in the Name field, and change the Argument Value field from UserLoginPassword to UserSiebelLoginPassword for the record with a value of j_password in the Name field.
If the user ID and password for the WCC host are different from the user ID and password for the Siebel application, then complete Step 6.
- Repeat Step a through Step c for the record with a value of WCC Invoice Popup Applet_Demo in the Name field.
If the user ID and password for the WCC host are different from the user ID and password for the Siebel application, then complete the following steps so that end users do not have to enter these credentials a second time:
Navigate to the Administration - Integration screen, then the SSO Systems Admin List view.
In the SSO Systems Administration list, add a record, and complete the fields in the following table.
Field Comments System Name
Type WCC Invoice URL.
Symbolic URL Name
Select WCC Invoice Popup Applet or WCC Invoice Popup Applet_Demo.
Description
Type WCC URL Credentials
In the SSO System Users list, add a record, and complete the fields in the following table.
Field Comments Siebel Login Name
Select the user ID for the Siebel application.
Login Name
Type the WCC user ID.
Password
Type the WCC password.
Restart the application.
The invoice image is now obtained from the WCC URL.
Entering Bank Information in Siebel Energy
A utility company might want to maintain a master list of verified, valid bank information and configure the Siebel application to display this bank information to users as a constrained list of values. This method can prevent users from capturing invalid Billing Profile information from customers.
A drop-down list of bank information in the Billing Profile displays the records that are entered in the Banks view of the Administration - Data screen. This topic describes how to enter the bank data manually.
To enter bank information in Siebel Energy
Navigate to the Administration - Data screen, then the Banks view.
Add a new record, and complete the necessary fields.
Some fields are described in the following table.
Field Comments Bank Name
Type the name of a bank in which customer funds are deposited.
Bank Routing Number
Type the routing number used for direct debit from the bank branch.
Bank Branch
Type a bank branch from which debits are withdrawn.
About Accessing or Updating Billing Information in Siebel Energy
Siebel Energy allows end users to access the same invoice information through different views. By selecting one view or another, end users can find the information most relevant to them, according to the procedure they want to perform at that moment.
Most views allow end users to record interactions with a customer and to update the customer’s information. The functionality available to end users depends on the end user access rights. From these views, end users can access information about billing, such as the account balance, invoice history, payment history, and adjustment history.
End-User Views
The end-user views follow:
Billing Portal view (call center agent). The Billing Portal view summarizes the billing information that a call center agent most likely needs to review while talking to a customer. It also makes it easy for call center agents to handle the most common transactions associated with invoices.
The Billing Portal view serves as a starting point for most customer inquiries. Among other tasks, the Billing Portal views allow call center agents to complete the following tasks:
Review the account status, such as the balance, delinquency information, and pending financial transactions (credit and debit) that have not yet been applied to the balance.
View the most recent invoices of a customer and access detailed information about an invoice.
View the history of payments and adjustments.
This history is useful if customers claim that they have already made a payment and that the balance is not correct.
Access the usage history of different services that the customer has so that unexpected hikes can be explained to the customer.
Begin transactions, such as recording payments or adjusting balances.
The following describes the information available in the Billing Portal view.
Views Description Account
Displays account information that corresponds to the Accounts screen, More Info view. End users can edit this information.
Account Balance
Displays balance information for the account. Retrieves this information from an external billing application. Information is read-only.
Pay button. Navigates to the Invoices screen, Payments view, in which a payment has been created to settle the entire account balance.
Refresh button. Updates the information with the most current data.
Invoice History
Displays information from the Invoices screen. Information is read-only.
Invoice # hyperlink. Navigates to the Invoices screen, Line Items view.
Payment History
Displays the payment history for the account. Information is read-only.
Payment # hyperlink. Navigates to the Invoices screen, Payments More Info view, Invoices subview, in which they record payments.
Adjustment History
Displays a subset of the information from the Invoices screen, Adjustment Requests view. Information is read-only.
Request # hyperlink. Navigates to the Adjustment Requests view, Line Items subview.
Additional Info
Billing Profile hyperlink. Navigates to the Accounts screen, Profiles view, Billing Profile form.
Usage Detail hyperlink. Navigates to the Accounts More Info form, Usage Detail view.
Unbilled Charges hyperlink. Navigates to the Account More Info form, Unbilled Charges view.
Invoices views (call center agent). The Invoices views allow call center agents to view all bill details. These views are generally accessed to reply to customer complaints regarding a specific charge on the bill. The Invoices views also allow call center agents to start transactions, such as adjusting an invoice, recording a payment against the invoice, requesting a bill duplicate.
Time Zones in Date-Time Fields
The search functions of the Billing Profile views include Start Date and End Date fields, which are used to search the billing information using date range criteria. In these fields, end users can select a date and time, and can also select the time zone.
The Start Date and End Date fields of the Billing Profile screen are of UTC Date Time type, and send the values selected by users in UTC format (ISO Standard). The UTCCanonical user property, when set to Y, enables the feature that converts the date and time values to UTC format.
Process of Accessing or Updating Billing Information in Siebel Energy (End User)
To find and display billing information, perform the following tasks:
Accessing Billing Information
To resolve customer inquiries, end users first find the billing account. In this account, they generally record payments. For most other transactions, end users record information at the invoice level.
End users can access the most recent invoice or retrieve past invoices. They can view invoice details, such as line items, after selecting the invoice. In addition, they can view the image of an already-sent invoice bill in HTML format.
To access billing information through the Billing Portal view, follow this procedure.
This task is a step in Process of Accessing or Updating Billing Information in Siebel Energy (End User).
To access the Billing Portal view
Navigate to the Accounts screen, then the Accounts List view.
Drill down on the name of the account.
Click the Billing Portal view tab.
The Billing Portal view appears with several lists and forms summarizing the billing information for that account.
Viewing Invoices
Use the procedures in this topic to access and view billing information in invoices.
This task is a step in Process of Accessing or Updating Billing Information in Siebel Energy (End User).
Accessing Invoice Views
To access billing information through the Invoices view, follow this procedure.
To access the Invoice views
Navigate to the Invoices screen.
In the Show drop-down list, select All External Invoices.
The Invoices list displays the bills that are generated by an external application. The information in the Invoices list (header information) is generally stored in the Siebel database. However, due to the large volume of data, it is not recommended that your company store the Invoice Line Item information in the Siebel database, but instead access that data in real time through integration.
Note: When you select All Invoices from the Show drop-down list, the Invoices list displays all invoices, including external invoices.In the Invoices list, perform a query in the Bill To Account field for the account name.
The Invoices list displays all invoices for that account, sorted by invoice number.
In the Invoices list, drill down on the invoice number of the invoice you want to view.
Click a view tab to access specific information for that invoice.
Viewing Invoice Line Items
To view line items for an invoice, follow this procedure.
To view invoice line items
Navigate to the Invoices screen.
In the Show drop-down list, select All External Invoices.
In the Invoices list, drill down on the invoice number of the invoice.
The Invoices form appears with the Line Items list beneath it.
Viewing Invoice Images From the Invoices Screen
To view the image of an invoice from the Invoices screen, follow this procedure.
To view the image of an invoice from the Invoices screen
Navigate to the Invoices screen.
In the Show drop-down list, select All External Invoices.
In the Invoices list, drill down on the invoice number of the invoice.
Click the Invoice Image view tab.
The invoice image appears in the Invoice Image view if the administrator sets up the integration between the Bill Statement host and the Siebel application. For more information, see Setting Up the Invoice Image Feature in Siebel Energy.
Viewing Invoice Images From a Billing Profile
To view the image of an invoice from a billing profile, follow this procedure.
To view the image of an invoice from a billing profile
Navigate to the Billing Profile portal.
For information on the billing profile, see Accessing Billing Information.
Click the Bills view tab to display a list of bills for the billing profile.
Click Refresh to retrieve up-to-date data from the billing application.
In the Bills list, select the record for the invoice image that you want to view, and click View Invoice.
If the user ID and password for the Web Center Content (WCC) host are the same as the user ID and password for the Siebel application, then the invoice image appears in a separate dialog box if the administrator sets up the integration between the WCC host and the Siebel application. For more information, see Setting Up the Invoice Image Feature in Siebel Energy.
If the user ID and password for the WCC host are different from the user ID and password for the Siebel application, then you must complete the following steps to view the invoice image:
In the dialog box that appears, enter your login credentials, and click Sign In.
Close this dialog box.
In the Bills list, click View Invoice again.
The invoice image appears in a separate dialog box.
If you want to view another invoice image, then select the record for that invoice image in the Bills list, and click View Invoice again.
The second invoice image replaces the invoice image in the first dialog box.
Viewing Invoice History
To view the invoice history, follow this procedure.
To view the invoice history
Navigate to the Accounts screen, then the Accounts List view.
Drill down on the name of the account.
Click the Billing Portal view tab.
The Invoice History list displays the most current records for the invoice. If the information does not appear in the Invoice History list, then perform a query to access the correct records.
Drill down on the invoice number of the invoice.
In the Line Items list, click the view tab for the information you want to view.
Process of Entering Payment Against an Outstanding Balance in Siebel Energy (End User)
End users can enter a payment for a customer at the account level or the invoice level, according to the accounting application used at their company.
To record and monitor bill payments, perform the following tasks:
Recording Account-Level Payments
To associate the payment against the account when the company’s accounting method applies the payment against the account balance (Balance Forward), perform this task.
This task is a step in Process of Entering Payment Against an Outstanding Balance in Siebel Energy (End User).
To record a payment at the account level
Navigate to the Accounts screen, then the Accounts List view.
Drill down on the name of the account.
Click the Billing Portal view tab.
In the Account Balance form, click Pay.
The Payments list appears with the account information for the new record.
In the field, select a method for payment.
In the Payments list, complete the necessary fields.
Some fields are described in the following table.
Field Comments Payment #
Displays a payment number that is automatically generated.
Payment Date
Displays a payment date that is automatically generated.
Payment Amount
Displays the payment amount by using the account and account balance. The Status field must be Open to enter the amount. Otherwise, this field is read-only.
Status
Displays a status value of Open. You can change this value to a value other than Submitted.
In the More Info form, complete additional fields, if necessary.
The available fields depend on the Payment Method selection you make as follows:
EFT. Deducts payment from the customer’s bank account.
Field Comments Bank Account #
Type the customer’s bank account number.
Account Holder Name
Type the name under which the customer’s bank account is registered.
Bank Branch
Type the reference number of the specific branch of the customer’s bank.
Credit Card. Charges payment to the customer’s credit card.
Reference. Captures payment details at a third-party location, such as post offices or banks.
Field Comments Location
Type the location where the payment is made.
Reference #
Type the reference number of the payment.
Click Submit.
Recording Invoice-Level Payments
You can associate the payment against one or more invoices when the company’s accounting method applies the payment against the bill balance (Open Item).
This task is a step in Process of Entering Payment Against an Outstanding Balance in Siebel Energy (End User).
Recording Payments for One Invoice
To record a payment against one invoice, follow this procedure.
To record a payment against one invoice
Navigate to the Invoices screen.
From the Show drop-down list, select All External Invoices.
In the Invoices list, click Pay.
A new record is created with the payment number, amount, date, and status already populated.
Complete Step 5 and the remaining steps of Recording Account-Level Payments.
Recording Payments for Multiple Invoices
To record a payment against multiple invoices, follow this procedure.
To record a payment against multiple invoices
Navigate to the Accounts screen, then the Accounts List view.
Drill down on the name of the account.
Click the Payments view tab.
In the Payments list, add a payment.
Drill down on the payment number of the payment.
The CME Payments view of the Payments screen appears with the Payment Detail form beneath it.
In the Payments list, drill down on the payment number of the payment again.
In the Invoices list, enter the amount that you want to apply to each invoice in the Payment Amount field.
In the Payment Detail form, enter the total amount.
Viewing Billing Payment History
You can view a history of bill payments by account.
This task is a step in Process of Entering Payment Against an Outstanding Balance in Siebel Energy (End User).
To view billing payment history
Navigate to the Accounts screen, then the Accounts List view.
Drill down on the name of the account.
Click the Billing Portal view tab.
The Payment History list displays the most current records for the account.
Viewing Usage Details in Siebel Energy (End User)
End users can view usage details for an invoice.
To view usage details
Navigate to the Accounts screen, then the Accounts List view.
Drill down on the name of the account.
Click the Billing Portal view tab.
Scroll down to the Additional Info list.
Drill down on the usage detail of a record.
The Usage Detail list appears with the Usage History list beneath it.
In the Usage History list, select the data you want to view from the drop-down list.
Viewing Unbilled Charges in Siebel Energy (End User)
End users can view unbilled charges for an account. The total of all unbilled charges appears in the Billing Portal view, but for a breakdown of the charges, end users can follow this procedure.
To view unbilled charges
Navigate to the Accounts screen, then the Accounts List view.
Drill down on the name of the account.
Click the Unbilled Charges view tab.
The Unbilled Charges view displays the charges incurred since the last invoice.
Some fields are described in the following table.
Field Comments Next Invoice Date
Displays the date the next statement is generated.
Recurring Charges
Displays the recurring charges for the current period.
NonRecurrng Charges
Displays the nonrecurring charges for the current period.
Surcharges
Displays the taxes and surcharges for the current period.
Total Charges
Displays the total unbilled charges for the current period. The formula follows: Recurring charges plus nonrecurring charges plus surcharges equal to total charges.
Process of Creating Adjustments in Siebel Energy (End User)
End users must sometimes adjust customer bills for various reasons, such as to apply credit to compensate for an overcharge. For more information about integrating the billing component with an external billing application, see Defining Integration Workflows for Siebel Energy.
To create an adjustment, perform the following tasks:
Requesting an Adjustment to an Invoice
End users can associate the adjustment request with the entire invoice or with a specific line item in the invoice. Because the billing component is integrated with an external billing application, an adjustment request is sent to the external billing application, which processes the request.
This task is a step in Process of Creating Adjustments in Siebel Energy (End User).
Requesting Adjustments for Entire Invoices
To request an adjustment to an entire invoice, follow this procedure.
To request an adjustment to an entire invoice
Navigate to the Invoices screen.
From the Show drop-down list, select All External Invoices.
In the Invoices list, drill down on the invoice number of the invoice.
Click the More Info view tab.
On the Invoices form, click Adjust.
The Adjustment Request form appears with some fields populated.
Complete any necessary information, such as the reason for the adjustment, and click Submit.
The request is processed, and the fields are populated with the results.
Requesting Adjustments for Invoice Line Items
To request an adjustment to a line item in an invoice, follow this procedure.
To request an adjustment to an invoice line item
Navigate to the Invoices screen.
From the Show drop-down list, select All External Invoices.
In the Invoices list, drill down on the invoice number of the invoice.
Click the Line Items view tab.
The Adjustment Request form appears with the Line Items list beneath it. The Status fields default to Open and the Type fields default to Credit. The list displays a history of adjustment requests.
Select the line item you want to adjust, and click Adjust.
A new record is created with some fields populated.
Complete any necessary information, such as the reason for the adjustment, and click Submit.
The request is processed, and the fields are populated with the results.
Viewing an Adjustment Request Outcome
Typically, the account adjustments and payment arrangement plans are determined in the back office, either manually or through an back-office application. The back-office application then sends the outcome of the request to Siebel Energy.
End users can view the request outcome and the history of adjustment requests.
This task is a step in Process of Creating Adjustments in Siebel Energy (End User).
Viewing Outcomes of Adjustment Requests
To view the outcome of an adjustment request, follow this procedure.
To view the outcome of an adjustment request
Navigate to the Invoices screen.
From the Show drop-down list, select All External Invoices.
In the Invoices list, drill down on the invoice number of the invoice.
The Invoices form appears with the view tabs beneath it.
Click the Adjustment Requests view tab.
In the Adjustment Request list, review the Amount Approved field.
The fields in this list show the response of external billing application to the bill repayment plan request. The Status field is updated automatically.
Viewing History of Adjustment Requests
To view the history of adjustment requests for an account, follow this procedure.
To view the history of adjustment requests
Navigate to the Accounts screen, then the Accounts List view.
Drill down on the name of the account.
Click the Adjustment Requests view tab.
The Adjustment Requests list displays all of the adjustment requests for the account.
Recording a Customer’s Decision About Adjustment Outcome Terms
After consulting with the customer, end users can record the customer’s decision to accept or reject the outcome terms.
This task is a step in Process of Creating Adjustments in Siebel Energy (End User).
To record the customer’s decision about the adjustment outcome terms
Navigate to the Invoices screen.
From the Show drop-down list, select All External Invoices.
In the Invoices list, drill down on the invoice number of the invoice.
The Invoices form appears with the view tabs beneath it.
Click the Adjustment Request view tab.
In the Adjustment Requests list, select the request record.
In the Customer Decision field, select information to indicate the customer’s decision to accept or reject the outcome terms.
Note: If your company does not require a customer decision regarding a bill adjustment outcome, then the customer decision fields might be unavailable.
Process of Making Payment Arrangements in Siebel Energy (End User)
End users can request a special arrangement if a customer is unable to pay for services when a bill payment is due. The customer can request a payment plan or a deferral of payment. In response, your company can approve the request, reject the request, or propose its own terms. The response might depend on factors such as corporate policy, customer credit history or credit worthiness, and longevity of the customer’s association with your company. For more information about integrating the billing component with an external billing application, see Defining Integration Workflows for Siebel Energy.
To make a payment arrangement, perform the following tasks:
Requesting a Payment Arrangement
Because the billing component is integrated with an external billing application, a payment arrangement request is sent to the external billing application, which processes the request and generates a response.
This task is a step in Process of Making Payment Arrangements in Siebel Energy (End User).
To request a payment arrangement
Navigate to the Invoices screen.
From the Show drop-down list, select All External Invoices.
In the Invoices list, drill down on the invoice number of the invoice.
Click the Payment Arrangements view tab.
In the Payment Arrangements list, add a record, and complete the fields as necessary.
Some fields are described in the following table.
Field Comments # of Installments
Type the number of installments. For a single-payment deferral plan, this number is 1.
Installment Amount
Displays the installment amount. This amount is calculated as follows: Amount owed divided by the number of installments.
The external billing application processes the request and populates the Payment Arrangements Outcome form at the end of the screen.
Viewing the Outcome of a Payment Arrangement Request
Siebel Energy receives the outcome of the request, which is generated by the external billing application.
This task is a step in Process of Making Payment Arrangements in Siebel Energy (End User).
Viewing Outcomes of Payment Arrangement Requests
To view the outcome of a payment arrangement request, follow this procedure.
To view the outcome of a payment arrangement request
Navigate to the Invoices screen.
From the Show drop-down list, select All External Invoices.
In the Invoices list, drill down on the invoice number of the invoice.
The Invoices form appears with the view tabs beneath it.
Click the Payment Arrangements view tab.
Scroll down to the Payment Arrangements Outcome form to review the response of the external billing application to the bill repayment plan request.
Viewing History of Payment Arrangements
To view the history of payment arrangements for an invoice, follow this procedure.
To view the history of payment arrangements
Navigate to the Invoices screen.
From the Show drop-down list, select All External Invoices.
In the Invoices list, drill down on the invoice number of the invoice.
Click the Payment Arrangements view tab.
In the Payment Arrangements list, select Payment Arrangements or Payment Arrangements Details from the drop-down list.
If the information does not appear in the Payment Arrangements list, then perform a query to access the correct records.
Recording a Customer’s Decision About Payment Arrangement Terms
After consulting with the customer, end users can record the customer’s decision to accept or reject the payment plan that their company is offering.
This task is a step in Process of Making Payment Arrangements in Siebel Energy (End User).
To record the customer’s decision about the payment outcome terms
Navigate to the Invoices screen.
From the Show drop-down list, select All External Invoices.
In the Invoices list, drill down on the invoice number of the invoice.
Click the Payment Arrangements view tab.
Scroll down to the Payment Arrangements Outcome form, and select a value in the Customer Decision field to indicate the customer’s decision to accept or reject the terms.
Requesting a Duplicate Invoice in Siebel Energy (End User)
Occasionally, a customer might request a copy of an invoice.
To request a duplicate invoice
Navigate to the Invoices screen.
From the Show drop-down list, select All External Invoices.
In the Invoices list, drill down on the invoice number of the invoice.
Click the Duplicate Request view tab.
In the Duplicate Request list, add a record, and complete the necessary fields.
Some fields are described in the following table.
Field Comments Street Address
Select the address to which to send the duplicate bill. The City, State, Zip, and Country fields are automatically populated when you select the address.
Comments
Type specific directions or descriptions about the duplication process.
To send the invoice to a different mailing address, complete the following steps:
In the Duplicate Request list, select Duplicate Bill Request Detail from the drop-down list.
In the Street Address field, select another address.
Updating a Billing Profile in Siebel Energy (End User)
When billing a customer,Siebel Energy integrates information, such as exemption information or discounts, that is stored in profiles. For more information about profiles, see Profiles in Siebel Energy.
To update a billing profile
Navigate to the Accounts screen, then the Accounts List view.
Drill down on the name of the account.
Click the Billing Portal view tab.
Scroll down to the Additional Info form.
Drill down on the billing profile of a record.
In the Billing Profile form, update the fields as necessary.
Additional End-User Tasks for Billing Management
This topic contains information about other tasks related to billing.
Caller Verification
When receiving an inbound call, end users first verify and find the caller. For more information about caller verification, see Siebel Applications Administration Guide.
Billing for Services
Some special billing procedures relate to billing for services. For more information about billing for services, see Siebel Order Management Guide Addendum for Communications.