Patent ID: 7076465

Claim:
A method using a computer for applying a group payment to a group, the group comprising a plurality of accounts spanning a plurality of credit products, comprising the steps of: receiving a payment at a payment processor and entering the payment into a computer system; determining that the payment is a group payment, wherein determining that the payment is a group payment includes identifying one or more accounts to which the payment is associated and determining that the one or more accounts are associated with a group; determining which accounts are included in a group payment allocation defined in relation to the group; comparing the group payment to a group balance, wherein the group balance indicates a liability due in relation to one or more accounts associated with the group payment allocation; based upon the comparison between the group payment and the group balance, identifying a group payment option using the computer system; calculating the group payment allocation in the computer system using the group payment option, the group payment, the group balance, and the balances of the accounts included in the group payment allocation; and applying the group payment to the accounts included in the group payment allocation, wherein a liability associated with one or more accounts included in the group payment allocation is reduced through application of at least a portion of the payment.