Why is this Bing Maps API address returning medium confidence because of zip+4?

Question

We have multiple customers in multiple US regions reporting issues with Bing Maps API reporting medium confidence when the zip+4 is used instead of the usual 5-digit zip code. Here are some samples and their confidence level:

1. zip+4 is medium confidence: http://dev.virtualearth.net/REST/v1/Locations?addressLine=501%20Granada%20Ave&adminDistrict=FL&locality=Venice&countryRegion=US&postalCode=34285-2208&maxRes=1&key=<our-key-here>
2. The same address as above without zip+4 is high confidence: http://dev.virtualearth.net/REST/v1/Locations?addressLine=501%20Granada%20Ave&adminDistrict=FL&locality=Venice&countryRegion=US&postalCode=34285&maxRes=1&key=<our-key-here>
3. USPS Address Lookup tool confirms the zip+4 address is correct.
4. A sample zip+4 that works correctly with high confidence: http://dev.virtualearth.net/REST/v1/Locations?addressLine=900%20Bethel%20Rd&adminDistrict=OH&locality=Columbus&countryRegion=US&postalCode=43214-1906&maxRes=1&key=<our-key-here>

Any ideas what is going wrong with the zip+4 address in item 1 above? Thanks.

Answer 1

Hi @RJBreneman ,

There is a lot that goes into a confidence score but typically the confidence goes down with ambiguity. I can't speak to specifics in this case so consider this just an educated guess from previous similar questions.

• Likely our USA data only has the 5 without the 4 so adding the 4 introduces something that isn't typically provided. At the least we do likely bias to the 5 only for Zip as that is more typically provided in US addresses.
• If I look for "501 Granada Ave" there are many across the US leading to the possibility another location might be in play. The more options that are close, the less confidence. Alternatively, when I look for "900 Bethel Rd" there are only two, one in OH and the other in VA so easy to disambiguate.
• while not likely in this case, some house numbers case be close to zip codes, and we have seen this lower confidence as well.

For the future https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/bingmaps/rest-services/locations/find-a-location-by-address has a value called "strictMatch" that should force the address to stay within the countryRegion & adminDistrict which should up the confidence for more common street names.

Sincerely,

IoTGirl

Answer 2

Somebody at Bing fixed it such that the problem query above returns high confidence now. Thanks!