Why is Payee duplicated in Memo field for downloaded transactions?

gt00tx

A bit ago, when downloading transactions, I started getting the payee information duplicated in the memo field for EVERY transaction, at least for my Bank of America accounts. It's hard to tell, I may have already deleted for other accounts, i.e., credit cards, etc.. (not sure). In any case, I'm not sure how or why this started but it's a pain having to delete the duplicate information in the memo field. Thoughts on how to stop it? Thanks!

Quicken Jasmine

Hello @gt00tx,

Thank you for contacting the Quicken Community, though I do apologize that you are experiencing this issue with the details of your transactions. 

First, I suggest creating a test file and adding the Bank of America account(s) to see if it produces the same issue with the memo field. It is recommended to save a backup before proceeding with troubleshooting steps in the event that you would like to return to your original starting position. Below are instructions on how to create a test file:

1. Choose File menu > New Quicken File.

1. Select New Quicken File.

1. Click OK.
2. In the File name field, enter the name of the new file, then click Save. Use a name like "Test File" to tell it apart from your main file. 

Don't use any of these characters: * ? < > | " : \ / (asterisk, question mark, left and right-angle bracket, pipe, straight quotation marks, colon, BACKSLASH, FORWARD SLASH). Also, don't add the .qdf extension; Quicken does that for you.

1. Sign in with your Quicken ID. If you are prompted to create a Quicken ID but already have one, click Sign In under the Create Account prompt. 

1. Select to not use Mobile.
2. Click Add Account to start adding accounts to the new file.

After adding accounts, see if you are experiencing the same problems in this test file. 

Please let me know how this goes, I look forward to hearing your response. 

gt00tx

Thanks Jasmine. Actually, I have another Quicken File that I use, created from scratch a couple years ago (not a clone of first File). Instead of creating another new one per your suggestion, I went to this other File and it's doing the exact same thing for BofA downloads. Is that sufficient to prove a point? It does not appear to be a File-specific issue. Unfortunately, this other file has no other accounts than BofA to see if they might be affected as well. But, upon further review, I'm seeing evidence of the same duplicating activity with several other accounts in my main File, i.e., credit cards, other bank accounts, etc.. So, it seems it could be a download setting, maybe? But it's hard to believed that both Files would have this same issue when created separately, and of course, this problem appears to have only started in late July, early August.  

UKR

Have you tried this?

There's a relatively new account - specific option, "Don't update memo when downloading" (see Edit Account Details, Online Services tab). Enable it for each account register giving you problems with the downloaded Memo text.

gt00tx

OK... Well, I decided to go ahead and do your suggestion. That is, I created a brand new File, then added a credit card account. It downloaded three months of data and for every single transaction, the Memo field is duplicating the Payee field information. It's quite uncanny!

Additional Info: I had not downloaded anything for two weeks prior to seeing this, as I was out of town. But, after seeing that the new File did the same thing and to all historic transactions, I doubt the two week delay in downloading is irrelevant. 

Also, I did come across this post, which is similar but not really: https://community.quicken.com/discussion/7886429/turn-of-automatic-memo-entries
https://community.quicken.com/discussion/7902040/how-to-stop-quicken-from-renaming-memo-on-download
I want to experiment with checking the 'Don't update Memo when downloading' option noted in the second post, but Quicken will NOT present online account settings like this until AFTER you create and download when initially setting up the account! So, I will have to wait until I have additional transactions to see if that stops the auto Memo entries/duplications. If this can stop it, that's great. Just curious as to why this just started a month ago... I'm guessing after an 'update', and on every file and account I have and new ones create. Something is wrong. Something happened at some point.

gt00tx

UKR said:

Have you tried this?

There's a relatively new account - specific option, "Don't update memo when downloading" (see Edit Account Details, Online Services tab). Enable it for each account register giving you problems with the downloaded Memo text.

So, this is a NEW wonderful 'feature', that Quicken threw in and left the default to be unchecked for every user in the world? I don't understand why this hasn't been posted a thousand times starting a month ago. But now, maybe I'm getting a bit testy and jumping to conclusions... LOL

thecreator

gt00tx said:

UKR said:

Have you tried this?

There's a relatively new account - specific option, "Don't update memo when downloading" (see Edit Account Details, Online Services tab). Enable it for each account register giving you problems with the downloaded Memo text.

So, this is a NEW wonderful 'feature', that Quicken threw in and left the default to be unchecked for every user in the world? I don't understand why this hasn't been posted a thousand times starting a month ago. But now, maybe I'm getting a bit testy and jumping to conclusions... LOL

Hi @"gt00tx

When I download Transactions to match to existing transaction, where the Memo Field already has information, the Memo is left as is.

gt00tx

thecreator said:

gt00tx said:

UKR said:

Have you tried this?

There's a relatively new account - specific option, "Don't update memo when downloading" (see Edit Account Details, Online Services tab). Enable it for each account register giving you problems with the downloaded Memo text.

So, this is a NEW wonderful 'feature', that Quicken threw in and left the default to be unchecked for every user in the world? I don't understand why this hasn't been posted a thousand times starting a month ago. But now, maybe I'm getting a bit testy and jumping to conclusions... LOL

Hi @"gt00tx

When I download Transactions to match to existing transaction, where the Memo Field already has information, the Memo is left as is.

Thanks. I can only say, typically, even for memorized transactions, my memo fields are blank... I don't use the Memo field for many transactions. That being said, based on your statement and the same thing I've see elsewhere, if the Memo field is empty, it should remain empty for memorized, repeated downloads... but's it not. It's being force-fed the same entry as the Payee. Read the article about backing up. Makes sense but not sure how that will help me at this point. I haven't lost anything. Are you suggesting this issue may not show up if I were to load a backup file and then download and bring it up to date?
EDIT: I pulled up a backup file. Opened it and attempted to download to see if the issue was present but it seems to be unable to download from several accounts I tried. It says 'Complete', no errors given, but nothing is downloaded and now there is the 'bad account' (O with diagonal line) symbol next to these accounts. 
ARRGH! Now my original prime account shows the accounts to be bad (O with diagonal line)!!! And I only did an update on the backup file, which I renamed and indicated 'I am only looking at this account', that I do NOT want it to be my primary account. In other words, I thought it would be a totally separate account I could use and test for my issue. How is it now comingled with my primary account?!?!
To clarify... the 'bad account' symbols is a bit larger and not bold as typical for a bad account connection. I test the download until I overnight after more new transactions will download.

Chris_QPW

gt00tx said:

UKR said:

Have you tried this?

There's a relatively new account - specific option, "Don't update memo when downloading" (see Edit Account Details, Online Services tab). Enable it for each account register giving you problems with the downloaded Memo text.

So, this is a NEW wonderful 'feature', that Quicken threw in and left the default to be unchecked for every user in the world? I don't understand why this hasn't been posted a thousand times starting a month ago. But now, maybe I'm getting a bit testy and jumping to conclusions... LOL

Not a thousand times, but it has been reported many times already.
https://community.quicken.com/discussion/7917382/payee-also-in-memo-field

And @UKR as pointed out in that thread the new option to not use the downloaded memo will not work because the memo isn't coming from the download.  It is some kind of Express Web Connect bug.

DougL219

> @gt00tx said:
> So, this is a NEW wonderful 'feature', that Quicken threw in and left the default to be unchecked for every user in the world? I don't understand why this hasn't been posted a thousand times starting a month ago. But now, maybe I'm getting a bit testy and jumping to conclusions... LOL

Well worth emphasizing: Now every user in the world must uncheck some setting in each of their accounts to prevent downloaded payee info from being duplicated in the memo field!! I know that's not a precise description of the issue but how in the world could anyone think this was a good way to introduce this "feature"?

Chris_QPW

DougL219 said:

> @gt00tx said:
> So, this is a NEW wonderful 'feature', that Quicken threw in and left the default to be unchecked for every user in the world? I don't understand why this hasn't been posted a thousand times starting a month ago. But now, maybe I'm getting a bit testy and jumping to conclusions... LOL

Well worth emphasizing: Now every user in the world must uncheck some setting in each of their accounts to prevent downloaded payee info from being duplicated in the memo field!! I know that's not a precise description of the issue but how in the world could anyone think this was a good way to introduce this "feature"?

It is also worth emphasizing that that option pointed out that I have already stated that option will not work so you don't have to bother checking in in all your accounts.

You have to wait for Quicken Inc to fix the problem.

gt00tx

@ Quicken Jasmine - FYI, since I created the new file and downloaded transactions from BofA, or tried to, it totally messed up my primary file for downloading BofA. I had to Set up the online service again. On a good note, I had previously checked the "Don't update memo when downloading" and VIOLA! even though it has not apparently helped others, the memo field is clear in that last download I just did! Whether that did it or Quicken fixed the 'bug', I'm not sure... but I'm happy about it!

gt00tx

@Chris_QPW As noted in my last post to Jasmine, after checking the "Don't update memo when downloading" box and re-setting up my BoA accounts, even though it has not apparently helped others, the memo field is clear in that last download! Whether that did it or Quicken fixed the 'bug', I'm not sure... but I'm happy about it! Maybe it's doing both checking the box and re setting up the account...? Well, I just checked the option for a credit card account, downloaded a new transaction and the Memo field is clear in that as well! So... <shrug>

gt00tx

On a side note, I worked for a company for 40 years, half of that time as software became more and more integrated with the devices, and more and more complicated. No matter how much klutz testing was done, no matter how many reviews, the updates always came out with bugs, or 'new features' as they we endearingly called, and some of them were very concerning and put a halt to upgrading in the field until a patch was done. Still, it amazed me how this happened to some degree with virtually every single update(!), even with some level of beta testing. Does Quicken push updates to some number of beta testers who actually use the product, or do they just assume all their updates are perfect? 

Chris_QPW

I think I made a mistake thinking that this is a generic Express Web Connect problem.

Over in Chase land/threads which just changed to Express Web Connect + everyone is getting the payee repeated in the memo.  In that case the memo isn't actually coming from the download and as such the feature to ignore the downloaded memo doesn't work.

At this time BofA is still on Express Web Connect and Direct Connect for the people that were grandfathered into it.  So, the problem might different and as such the feature for ignoring the downloaded memo might work.

BTW I definitely disagree with the statement that Quicken Inc should have made this option the default for every account when they put it in.  That is a a personal opinion and it would have changed the default behavior of how Quicken does this.  And that is never a good idea.  It might have been great for this one problem, but would have angered others that actually do want to see the memos downloaded from the financial institution.

Chris_QPW

gt00tx said:

On a side note, I worked for a company for 40 years, half of that time as software became more and more integrated with the devices, and more and more complicated. No matter how much klutz testing was done, no matter how many reviews, the updates always came out with bugs, or 'new features' as they we endearingly called, and some of them were very concerning and put a halt to upgrading in the field until a patch was done. Still, it amazed me how this happened to some degree with virtually every single update(!), even with some level of beta testing. Does Quicken push updates to some number of beta testers who actually use the product, or do they just assume all their updates are perfect? 

I think this is great summary of the situation that Quicken Inc is with Quicken Windows.

As for beta testing, they do have it, but they also don't put all releases through it.