combining customer and customer contact tables

[Mclaren]

I have a DB set up with a debtors table (Customers) and a Customer Contacts table, I was thinking of combining these two tables into one. but before i do this, i really want to know the pros and cons of this idea. Has anyone done it this way, and if so, have you experienced issues doing it this way.

Reason for my thinking of doing this is: some of my debtors are the contact.

In other words....Most of the Debtors are companies, but a few are actual people. With the current setup, i need to have both a debtor and a customer in two different tables, but with exactly the same data.

Please i am really looking for some constructive advice for both for and against, so i can then really make a well thought choice, rather than combining the tables only to have further issues down the line.

[orange]

You could put them all in one table - since they are all Debtors. And include a field for your convenience - DebtorType individual/company or whatever is significant to you.

To help in these situations, I recommend you try to define exactly what you mean by
a) debtor
b) contact

Once you get them on paper, for example, in a manner that someone unfamiliar with your application could understand what it is you're dealing with, you'll often find something that "differentiates" them and you will have 2 entities - and you will be clear on how they differ.

Have you built a data model?
Have you written down your business facts/rules?
These steps will help clarify the entities, attributes and relationships.

Good luck and Merry Christmas.