AMS360 Data Cleanup: Using the Merge Tool to Eliminate Duplicate Customer Records

December 2, 2025

Are duplicate customer records plaguing your AMS360 system? Duplicates often lead to reporting issues, accounting discrepancies, and extra data cleanup work. The AMS360 Merge tool offers a simple way to combine those duplicate entries and move all related data into a single accurate customer record.

In this article, we’ll help you understand common causes of duplicate records, share tips to help you prevent future duplicates, and walk you through the merge process so you can confidently clean up your data.

Common Causes of Duplicate Customer Records in AMS360

Duplicate customer entries can happen for a variety of reasons, many of which stem from inconsistent processes or simple workflow oversights. Understanding these root causes will help prevent the issue from recurring. One of the most common causes of duplicate customer records in AMS360 is using inconsistent naming conventions. Variations in how names are entered, such as abbreviations, punctuation differences, or changes in legal suffixes (LLC, Inc., Corp.), can lead staff to believe the customer does not already exist, resulting in the creation of a duplicate record.

For example:

Customer Record 1:

Customer Record 2:

In this scenario there are likely two causes for the duplication:

The abbreviation of Technology was used in the entry of one customer, instead of the full name.
A different representative might have entered and possibly even bound the second line of business.

Whatever the reason for the duplication, an attempt at identifying the “Why?” is the first step and then the second step is to eliminate one of them through Merge.

Other Common Causes of Record Duplication

Inconsistent naming conventions are only part of the issue. Other common reasons for duplicate customer records in AMS360 include:

Searching too narrowly before creating a new record: If users search only by the full name, forget to use wildcards, or search under the wrong field, they may not see an existing customer and create a duplicate.
Lack of standardized data-entry procedures: Without clear guidelines for naming, formatting, and searching, team members may follow their own habits, resulting in inconsistent entries.
Separate departments creating their own records: Different departments, such as Commercial Lines, Personal Lines, or Benefits, may each create an entry for the same client if internal processes don’t require verifying an existing account.
System migrations or data conversions: When records are imported from another system, slight variations in naming or incomplete matching logic can create multiple entries for the same customer.
Third-party integrations automatically creating entries: Downloads or integrations from raters and quoting tools may generate customer records automatically before a user verifies whether the customer already exists.
Mismatched or missing identifiers: Missing or inconsistent account numbers, tax IDs, or DBAs can make existing records harder to locate.

Tips for Avoiding Duplicate Customer Records in AMS360

Here are a few simple standards that your agency can implement to help prevent duplicate entry of customers:

Always search for the customer before creating a new record. Make this a required step in your workflows.
Set your View Options to “Match On Keyword.” At minimum, include Customer, DBA, and Named Insureds to ensure you are seeing all possible matches.
Use the asterisk (*) wildcard when searching. This widens your search and helps capture variations in naming.
Keep searches simple. For example, instead of typing “John T. Smith Consulting,” search using john*consult to ensure you find records with slight differences in formatting.

Preparing to Merge Customers in AMS360

After reviewing duplicate customer records and confirming that they should be merged, you need to identify which customer record will remain as the primary account. All associated data (activities, suspense, accounting) will transfer to the record you keep, so the decision often comes down to preference.

Tip: We recommend keeping the customer record with the longest and most complete policy history.

A Note for ImageRight Users: If you use ImageRight, you will need to merge the two customers in ImageRight as well. After identifying the customer number you plan to keep, use that same number in ImageRight to ensure consistency across both platforms.

How to Merge Duplicate Customers in AMS360

1. Go to the Admin Tab (Administration Center) in AMS360.

2. Click on Merge in the left-hand column.

3. Click on Merge Customer.

4. Under “Source Customer” click on Select Source Customer.

5. In the search box, enter the Customer Number of the instance you’ve chosen to get rid of or merge, then change the “Search By” option to Account #.

6. Under “Include” choose “All” and click Search.

7. Choose the result that pertains to the instance you are keeping and click Select.

8. Under “Target Customer” click on Select Target Customer.

9. In the search box enter the Customer Number of the instance you’ve chosen to keep and change the “Search By” option to Account # and Click Search.

10. Choose the result that pertains to the instance you are keeping and click Select.

11. Review your results under your “Selected Source Customer” and your “Selected Target Customer” and if they look correct, click Merge.

12. You will get a message at the top advising when the merge is complete.

13. You can view your results under Merge Results.

14. Click on the option and view results in the Summary

The summary tells you the number of each of the following moved in the merge:

Activities
Claims
Documents
Notes,
Policies/Submission
Suspense

Note: The summary does not include accounting data, but all accounting does transfer to the target customer.

Important Considerations when Merging Customers in AMS360

Be Careful with Department-Based Customer Records: If your agency creates a separate customer entry for each Department (ie. 1 customer entry for Commercial Lines and a separate entry for Benefits), be careful not to combine different department entries.
Policy-Level Data Does Not Update Automatically: The policy level that was entered under the Source customer will remain the same, it does not update to the Target customer, so you may need to correct the name or possibly the Rep if they were different. The policy level does not change with the merge.
Duplicate Policies May Still Need Cleanup: If both customer instances in AMS360 had the same lines of business policies for the same years, you will still need to delete the duplicate policies or “inactivate” some of them.
ImageRight Users Must Perform a Separate Merge: If you use ImageRight, you will need to merge the two customer instances in ImageRight as well, and then do cleanup.

Final Thoughts

Merging duplicate customer records is one of the most effective steps you can take to clean up your AMS360 data and enhance the accuracy of your reporting. Although you may still need to address a few follow-up items, this process significantly improves data quality and reduces the risk of confusion or errors down the road. Just remember to identify and address the root causes of duplication to prevent the issue from resurfacing.

If your agency is ready to operate more efficiently and fully leverage the power of AMS360, our Agency Consultanting team at Kite Technology Group is ready to support you. Whether you need an AMS360 Assessment, System Optimization, process refinement, or workflow development, KiteTech offers a wide range of AMS360 Consulting Services to help you get the most from your AMS360 investment. Connect with us today to schedule your complimentary consultation.