We are getting some complaints about “double-charges” coming in as email notifications from some customers.
Apparently, when we swipe the card, the customer is getting a message for the Authorization of the charge. Then when a tip is added to the sale, and the order is completed, they get a second email notification. They do NOT see the interim transaction as shown below that “Voids” the original auth.
In this case, the customer bought wine, the card was swiped. Then the tip was added and the customer signs the iPad, closing the deal. But for whatever reason, he gets two emails.
Has anyone else experienced this behavior? If so, how can I disable the interim email message and make only the final capture be the one the have an email sent out?
So this only happens when there’s a POS tip, right? The real root of the problem is that Authorize.net, to my understanding, does not truly authorize a charge. They do charge the initial amount, then Void it and charge a second total + tip.
Give that a try yourself: see if the first amount actually gets charged on your card.
Other gateways like USAePay and WorldPay actually do a pre-authorization then charge a slightly higher amount. The pre-auth drops off, there is no Void, only a post-auth.
Unless Authorize.net can accommodate pre-authorizations now, you’ll have this unfortunate issue until you guys switch to another payment gateway.
I apologize that this is a spot of bad news on your Monday morning!
@cdjohnston, yeah, I’m sorry about that. I’ve seen this issue solved by a gateway switch and nothing else, unfortunately. I think more people would finally get away from Authorize.net if they actually knew that this was going on.
As for comparing WorldPay and USAePay, we felt that from a customer service standpoint, WorldPay is not an adequate partner. We fully and wholly recommend USAePay.
Not to muddy the waters here but if you were to switch to USAePay, we’d recommend that you speak with Jeff Cole from Change Merchant Solutions. Jeff and his team have created the best and closest integration with Vin65, USAePay, and iPayments that we’ve ever had.
Let me know if you have any questions. If you want to contact Jeff Cole at Change Merchant Solutions, he can be reached at jeff@changemerchantsolutions.com or 818.346.9888.
If you want to pre-auth a tip and print a receipt with a tip line, put the stuff in the cart and tap the menu icon then Print Receipt. This is currently the only way to print a receipt with a tip line. Then, when the customer fills out the receipt and signs it, you would then have to enter that information into POS to finish processing the transaction.
Worldpay is less reliable, their customer support is non-existant, they have no first-party EMV/chip solutions and their account updater doesn’t support Discover.
Just be wary with switching to any preferred partners. Vin65 will hype them up, then at some point bail. Though, I will say Jeff Cole is an absolute gentleman.
Wow - so I filed the paperwork yesterday. All of the sudden, i get this call this afternoon - “Your merchant account is approved and we emailed documentation to you”. Not even 24 hours turnaround. I am VERY impressed how quickly that worked.
