When rewards are split across two guest profiles, first verify that both profiles belong to the same person. Then trace the points and rewards on each account before choosing a correction. A merge may be possible, but some systems may require a balance adjustment or a manual record instead.
Do not add the two displayed balances and delete one profile on the spot. You could miss an expired reward, count a redemption twice, or remove the contact method the guest uses to sign in. Give an authorized employee a short checklist and a clear way to escalate uncertain cases.
Identify the duplicate without exposing guest details
A duplicate can start with a new phone number, a second email address, or an order placed under a different spelling. A shared household phone or a familiar name alone does not establish that two profiles belong to one person.
Start with the profile the guest can access. Ask which other email address or phone number they may have used, and search for a matching record using the access available to your role. Avoid reading full contact details from a suspected profile aloud, displaying them to another guest, or sending screenshots between employees.
Use your restaurant’s approved verification process for both profiles. Depending on the tools available, that might involve the guest signing in to each account or confirming a code sent through an existing account channel. Ask your provider what verification methods the system supports. If the guest no longer controls one of the contact methods, escalate rather than treating a matching name as proof.
Once ownership is verified, ask the guest for permission to make the specific correction. Explain which profile they will keep using, what will happen to the other one, and any known effect on points or rewards. Permission to correct an account is separate from consent to receive marketing messages. Do not add a guest to a promotional list merely because they requested help.
Account-correction request checklist
- Record a case reference and the identifiers needed to find each profile, using masked contact details where practical.
- Document how ownership of each profile was verified and who performed the check. Do not record passwords or verification codes.
- Record the guest’s permission for the requested correction and the profile they want to keep.
- Identify the employee authorized to make the change and the person who can approve exceptions.
- Capture the balances, reward status, expiration dates, and relevant recent transactions before making changes.
- Note the intended method, the result, and how the guest will be informed.
Keep the record in the approved staff system, with access limited to people who need it. If ownership remains uncertain, leave the profiles unchanged and explain what the guest can provide or do next.
Check what the software can actually change
Ask the provider to walk through the correction before promising a merge. A true merge may combine records into one profile; an adjustment may change a balance while leaving two profiles in place. Manual reconciliation can be a fallback, but staff then need a reliable way to recognize the earlier correction and avoid applying it again.
Use the following questions in a buying discussion or support request. The right route depends on the controls available and the history attached to the accounts.
| Possible route | What to ask | What staff must check |
|---|---|---|
| Merge profiles | Can an authorized user combine these profiles, and which one remains active? | Whether points, rewards, transaction history, expiration dates, and contact settings carry over correctly. |
| Adjust a balance | Can staff add or remove points with a reason and an audit record? | Whether the adjustment preserves reward eligibility and whether the second profile remains usable. |
| Manual reconciliation | If neither action is available, how should staff record and honor the correction? | Who can approve it, where the record lives, and how future visits will be handled. |
| Escalate or leave unchanged | Can support investigate conflicting history or an inaccessible profile? | What evidence is needed and what the guest should expect while the case is open. |
For any route, ask whether the action can be reversed, who can perform it, and what the audit history shows. Also ask what happens to sign-in credentials, saved preferences, marketing permissions, and any active offers. A balance adjustment is not automatically equivalent to transferring a reward with its original expiration date.
During a software evaluation, follow the account from order to loyalty record. Ask whether eligible orders from each channel appear in the same profile and how staff find a guest at checkout. Your restaurant POS system and ordering setup may affect how staff identify the account, so include those steps in the discussion rather than looking only at the loyalty screen.
Trace points, redemptions, and expiration dates
Record what each profile shows before changing anything. Separate the current points balance from rewards already issued, redeemed, expired, or pending. A points balance may indicate progress toward a reward, but it does not necessarily mean the guest has a reward they can redeem now.
Check recent earning transactions against the program’s rules. Look for the same order appearing twice, a refund or cancellation that changed points, and a redemption recorded on only one profile. If the history does not explain the displayed balance, ask the provider or an authorized manager to investigate before adjusting it.
Hypothetical example: A verified guest has 70 available points on profile A and 45 on profile B. The program issues one reward at 100 eligible points. Profile A also shows an already redeemed reward, and profile B shows 10 of its 45 points expiring at the end of the month. There are no duplicate earning transactions or pending reversals.
The two displayed balances total 115 points. That total is not proof that the guest currently has a redeemable reward: the system’s issuance rules and the correction method determine what happens next. The already redeemed reward should not be issued again. Before proceeding, ask whether combining or adjusting the points would issue a new reward, whether the 10-point expiration is retained, and whether any issued reward has its own expiration date.
If the software can preserve the relevant history and expiration dates, an authorized merge may be the cleanest option for this example. If it cannot, do not simply set profile A to 115 and assume the outcome is equivalent. Agree on an approved alternative, document any difference, and tell the guest what they can actually use and when. If the provider cannot explain the result, pause the correction.
For a broader discussion of reward economics, see the guide to calculating loyalty reward costs. For this decision, the immediate question is whether the correction accurately reflects the guest’s history and the program terms.
Confirm the result and keep a usable record
Before applying a change, have the authorized employee review the two starting states, the proposed result, and any exceptions. A manager should approve a correction that falls outside normal permissions or cannot preserve the original terms. If a provider must perform the change, agree on who will check the result afterward.
After the correction, review the active profile rather than relying only on a success message. Confirm the displayed points, any reward that is actually available to redeem, relevant expiration dates, and the status of the other profile. Check that the guest can use the intended sign-in method. If a manual reconciliation was used, make sure the staff record explains what should happen on the guest’s next visit.
Send or provide a concise confirmation through an approved channel. State which profile the guest should use, the resulting points balance, any currently redeemable reward and its expiration, and whom to contact if something looks wrong. Do not include a full history or unnecessary personal details. A service message about the requested correction should not be treated as permission to send promotions.
Train employees with simulated profiles or a provider’s practice environment where available. A simulation should not trigger a real payment, guest message, or courier dispatch. Walk through a routine duplicate, an inaccessible contact method, and a conflicting redemption. Separately, if you choose to run a live service pilot, use your normal authorization and guest communication procedures; a live correction affects a real account and is not a simulation.
Finally, review recurring causes. If guests often create a second profile at checkout, ask the provider how account lookup and sign-in work across ordering and in-store service. Review access and handoffs in your restaurant management software, too. The goal is a repeatable correction process that does not depend on one employee remembering an exception.
For your next software review, bring the checklist and ask the provider to demonstrate the available correction workflow. Compare it with the loyalty and communication tools in Fleksa’s restaurant marketing automation, including who can access guest records and how staff would handle a split balance.
Frequently asked questions
Can we just add the balances from both profiles?
Not until ownership and transaction history are verified. Check for duplicate earnings, redemptions, reversals, and different expiration dates. Also confirm whether an adjustment changes reward eligibility or issues a reward.
What if the guest cannot access their old email or phone number?
Do not rely on a matching name alone. Ask the provider or an authorized manager about an approved alternative verification process. Leave the profiles unchanged until ownership can be established.
Does correcting an account authorize marketing messages?
No. Permission to correct a loyalty account is separate from permission to send promotions. Preserve and review each profile’s communication settings as part of the correction.
