[Due for payment 2026-02-03] [$250] Web - Contact Methods - Existing account email gets stuck on Add Contact Method without error

[jponikarchuk]

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Version Number: 9.3.2-1
Reproducible in staging?: Yes
Reproducible in production?: Yes
If this was caught during regression testing, add the test name, ID and link from BrowserStack: https://test-management.browserstack.com/projects/2219752/folder/13176687/test-cases/41236654
Email or phone of affected tester (no customers): testing210790+65t@gmail.com
Issue reported by: Applause Internal Team
Bug source: Regression TC Execution
Device used: Windows 11
App Component: Notifications

Action Performed:

1. Navigate to Account Settings
2. Open Profile
3. Click on Contact Method
4. Click on New Contact Method
5. Enter an email that already belongs to an existing user account
6. Click on Add

Expected Result:

The user is redirected to the Contact Methods page and an error is displayed indicating that emails associated with existing accounts cannot be added as secondary contact methods

Actual Result:

After clicking on Add, the page shows a loading state and remains on the Add Contact Method screen. No error message is displayed and the user is not informed that the entered email already belongs to an existing account. The user is unable to proceed or understand why the action failed.

Workaround:

Unknown

Platforms:

• Android: App
• Android: mWeb Chrome
• iOS: App
• iOS: mWeb Safari
• iOS: mWeb Chrome
• Windows: Chrome
• MacOS: Chrome / Safari

Screenshots/Videos

1.mp4

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• MobileMage | Contributor | 110180255

Issue Owner

Current Issue Owner: @mallenexpensify

[melvin-bot]

Triggered auto assignment to @mallenexpensify (Bug), see https://stackoverflow.com/c/expensify/questions/14418 for more details. Please add this bug to a GH project, as outlined in the SO.

[MobileMage]

Proposal

Please re-state the problem that we are trying to solve in this issue.

When adding a contact method with an email that already belongs to an existing account, the page shows a loading spinner and gets stuck without displaying any error message.

What is the root cause of that problem?

The failureData in addNewContactMethod wipes out the error information from the server.

Here's what happens:

1. User enters an email belonging to an existing account
2. API call is made, server returns error with onyxData containing the error message in LOGIN_LIST[contactMethod].errorFields.addedLogin
3. Server's onyxData is applied first (this is correct)
4. Then failureData is applied, which does this:

// src/libs/actions/User.ts:420-426
{
    onyxMethod: Onyx.METHOD.MERGE,
    key: ONYXKEYS.LOGIN_LIST,
    value: {
        [contactMethod]: null,  // Erases EVERYTHING including the error
    },
},

Setting the entry to null erases the error info the server just sent. The page checks LOGIN_LIST[contactMethod].errorFields.addedLogin for errors, but that's now gone.

What changes do you think we should make in order to solve the problem?

Remove the LOGIN_LIST entry from failureData. The server already sends proper error data in its onyxData response - we just need to stop erasing it.

diff --git a/src/libs/actions/User.ts b/src/libs/actions/User.ts
--- a/src/libs/actions/User.ts
+++ b/src/libs/actions/User.ts
@@ -401,7 +401,7 @@ function addNewContactMethod(contactMethod: string, validateCode = '') {
-    const failureData: Array<OnyxUpdate<typeof ONYXKEYS.ACCOUNT | typeof ONYXKEYS.VALIDATE_ACTION_CODE | typeof ONYXKEYS.PENDING_CONTACT_ACTION | typeof ONYXKEYS.LOGIN_LIST>> = [
+    const failureData: Array<OnyxUpdate<typeof ONYXKEYS.ACCOUNT | typeof ONYXKEYS.VALIDATE_ACTION_CODE | typeof ONYXKEYS.PENDING_CONTACT_ACTION>> = [
         {
             onyxMethod: Onyx.METHOD.MERGE,
             key: ONYXKEYS.ACCOUNT,
@@ -417,12 +417,6 @@ function addNewContactMethod(contactMethod: string, validateCode = '') {
                 actionVerified: false,
             },
         },
-        {
-            onyxMethod: Onyx.METHOD.MERGE,
-            key: ONYXKEYS.LOGIN_LIST,
-            value: {
-                [contactMethod]: null,
-            },
-        },
     ];

This way when the server returns an error for "email already exists", the error message stays in LOGIN_LIST[contactMethod].errorFields.addedLogin and gets displayed to the user.

What alternative solutions did you explore? (Optional)

Could also update failureData to preserve error fields (like deleteContactMethod does), but that's more complex. Since the server already sends the right error data, simply not erasing it is the cleanest fix.

[yatin-italy]

Proposal

Restate the problem this issue is trying to solve.

• Adding an email that already exists on another account gets stuck loading.
• The Add Contact Method screen never finishes.
• No error is shown to the user.

What is the root cause of that problem?

• The client applies a failure fallback.
• This fallback merges its own Onyx data.
• It overwrites backend Onyx data.
• The server error and pending cleanup are erased.

const failureData = [
    {key: ONYXKEYS.ACCOUNT, value: {isLoading: false}},
    {key: ONYXKEYS.VALIDATE_ACTION_CODE, value: {validateCodeSent: null}},
    {key: ONYXKEYS.LOGIN_LIST, value: {[contactMethod]: null}},
];
API.write('AddNewContactMethod', params, {successData, failureData});

What changes do you think we should make in order to solve the problem?

• Delete all client-crafted failureData.
• Let backend Onyx data be the single source of truth.
• Do not override errors, pending fields, or loading state.
• Add a short comment to explain this rule.
• Remove unused imports and types tied to failureData.

-    const failureData = [
-        {
-            onyxMethod: Onyx.METHOD.MERGE,
-            key: ONYXKEYS.ACCOUNT,
-            value: {isLoading: false},
-        },
-        {
-            onyxMethod: Onyx.METHOD.MERGE,
-            key: ONYXKEYS.VALIDATE_ACTION_CODE,
-            value: {validateCodeSent: null},
-        },
-        {
-            onyxMethod: Onyx.METHOD.MERGE,
-            key: ONYXKEYS.LOGIN_LIST,
-            value: {[contactMethod]: null},
-        },
-    ];
-
-    API.write('AddNewContactMethod', params, {successData, failureData});
+    // Backend onyxData handles failure cleanup (errors, pending fields, loading); do not override here.
+    API.write('AddNewContactMethod', params, {successData});

[ShridharGoel]

Proposal

Please re-state the problem that we are trying to solve in this issue.

Contact Methods - Existing account email gets stuck on Add Contact Method without showing any error

What is the root cause of that problem?

The failure handler clears the new login entry in the login list. The API error is attached to that login entry, so it gets wiped and the UI cannot show it.

App/src/libs/actions/User.ts

Lines 401 to 426 in 0860dcf

	const failureData: Array<OnyxUpdate<typeof ONYXKEYS.ACCOUNT | typeof ONYXKEYS.VALIDATE_ACTION_CODE | typeof ONYXKEYS.PENDING_CONTACT_ACTION | typeof ONYXKEYS.LOGIN_LIST>> = [
	{
	onyxMethod: Onyx.METHOD.MERGE,
	key: ONYXKEYS.ACCOUNT,
	value: {isLoading: false},
	},
	{
	onyxMethod: Onyx.METHOD.MERGE,
	key: ONYXKEYS.VALIDATE_ACTION_CODE,
	value: {validateCodeSent: null},
	},
	{
	onyxMethod: Onyx.METHOD.MERGE,
	key: ONYXKEYS.PENDING_CONTACT_ACTION,
	value: {
	isLoading: false,
	actionVerified: false,
	},
	},
	{
	onyxMethod: Onyx.METHOD.MERGE,
	key: ONYXKEYS.LOGIN_LIST,
	value: {
	[contactMethod]: null,
	},
	},

What changes do you think we should make in order to solve the problem?

Update errorFields.addedLogin in the failureData of the pending contact action.

Updated code:

const failureData: Array<OnyxUpdate<typeof ONYXKEYS.ACCOUNT | typeof ONYXKEYS.VALIDATE_ACTION_CODE | typeof ONYXKEYS.PENDING_CONTACT_ACTION | typeof ONYXKEYS.LOGIN_LIST>> = [
    ....
    {
        onyxMethod: Onyx.METHOD.MERGE,
        key: ONYXKEYS.PENDING_CONTACT_ACTION,
        value: {
            isLoading: false,
            actionVerified: false,
            errorFields: {
                addedLogin: ErrorUtils.getMicroSecondOnyxErrorWithTranslationKey('contacts.genericFailureMessages.addContactMethod'),
            },
        },
    },
];

[truph01]

This might be a regression introduced by #77429.

[melvin-bot]

@mallenexpensify Eep! 4 days overdue now. Issues have feelings too...

[melvin-bot]

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