In the majority of lookup windows, you can type in the first several characters of the ID before doing a lookup, and when you select the desired record from the lookup window, it brings you back to the maintenance window and populates with the selected record.  If you take those same steps in the account maintenance window, you are asked if you want to save the record (the few characters you typed prior to going to the lookup).  If the lookup is engaged after typing the characters, it should not ask if you want to save that record when you return to the window.