Blackcart performs a payment authorization for all orders upon checkout to verify funds availability. The way the authorization is processed and how it will show up on your customer's statement is different depending on the type of card you used.
We've compiled the resources below to help your team understand and communicate the expected customer experience to your customers.
- Customer Experience: Payment Authorization workflow
- Templated Customer FAQ
- Templated Macro
- Blackcart Shopper Terms and Conditions
Customer Experience: Payment Authorization workflow
The screens below provide more details around how customers are educated about the payment authorization experience before and after checking out with their Try Before You Buy order.
Learn More modal
Additional copy is added to the Learn More modal by default. This copy is static and cannot be edited. All other copy within your Learn More model is customizable.
Checkout: Payment page (default setting)
When visitors land on the payment page of checkout, the default payment method will be set to credit card. Explainer text has been added to explain the authorization behaviour.
Checkout: Payment page (Debit card setting)
When visitors select the Debit Card payment option, the explainer text is updated to reflect the authorization behaviour if a debit card is used.
Debit card confirmation
If the customer enters information for a debit card, they are prompted with a pop-up modal to confirm they accept the debit card authorization terms before the transaction is processed.
- The Pay Today amount is equal to the deposit plus any upfront items, shipping, and taxes
- The remaining balance is equal to the value of the TBYB items less the deposit
If the customer does not like the debit card authorization terms, they can click "Change to a credit card" to go back and switch their payment method from debit to credit.
Successful authorization - Debit cards
If the debit card authorization is successful, the order is placed and the customer is presented with the order confirmation page.
For debit cards, the customer is reminded about the authorization hold below the "Pay Today" line in the order summary.
Successful authorization - Credit cards
If the credit card authorization is successful, the order is placed and the customer is presented with the order confirmation page.
Failed authorization; retry
If the authorization is not successful for either a debit card or a credit card, the customer is prompted to try a different payment method.
After 3 failed authorizations
If the authorization is not successful for either a debit card or a credit card after 3 tries, the customer is presented with a notification to explain why the order was not successfully placed and instructions to modify their cart to retry.
Debit card re-authorization
The authorization hold on debit cards can be held for a maximum of 7 days, therefore the debit card hold may need to be re-authorized during the trial period.
When the authorized hold is re-authorized, the date of the authorization on the customer’s bank statement will update, so Blackcart will send an email notification anytime an re-authorization occurs to avoid any potential confusion.
Templated Customer FAQ
We suggest adding the following FAQ to your existing customer FAQ section to help clarify any questions your customer might have about the authorization on their statement after they checkout with a Try Before You Buy order.
Question: Why do I see an authorization on my credit card statement for my Try Before You Buy order?
Answer: For Try Before You Buy orders, an authorization is performed upon checkout to verify funds availability. The way the authorization is processed and how it will show up on your statement is different depending on the type of card you used:
- Credit card: Your credit card is authorized for the total order value to verify funds availability. The authorization is immediately canceled and no funds are held. While the authorization is immediately canceled, It may take the card issuing bank 1-2 days to remove the authorization from the cardholder statement. You will see a charge transaction for the pay today amount, which is the Try Before You Buy Deposit ({insert deposit amount}) plus any additional items paid for upfront.
- Debit card: Your debit card is authorized for the total order value less the pay today amount. The debit authorization will be kept in place during the trial period ({insert trial period days} days after delivery) and means that the money is still in your account but the funds are on hold and are restricted from being used. This is done to guarantee payment and help you avoid overdraft fees if you keep the items. You will only be charged for any items you keep after the trial period. Also note that you will see a charge transaction for the pay today amount, which is the Try Before You Buy Deposit ({insert deposit amount}) plus any additional items paid for upfront.
Templated Macro
Below is a suggested template for your CS team to use to respond to any customer inquiries related to the payment authorizations.
Thank you for getting in touch. We are happy to help clarify any questions you might have.
I can see your order was purchased through the Try Before You Buy program (powered by our partner, Blackcart).
Blackcart performs an authorization upon checkout to verify funds availability. The way the authorization is processed and how it will show up on your statement is different depending on the type of card you used:
- Credit card: Your credit card is authorized for the total order value to verify funds availability. The authorization is immediately canceled and no funds are held. While the authorization is immediately canceled, It may take the card issuing bank 1-2 days to remove the authorization from the cardholder statement. You will see a charge transaction for the pay today amount, which is the Try Before You Buy Deposit ({insert deposit amount}) plus any additional items paid for upfront.
- Debit card: Your debit card is authorized for the total order value less the pay today amount. The debit authorization will be kept in place during the trial period ({insert trial period days} days after delivery) and means that the money is still in your account but the funds are on hold and are restricted from being used. This is done to guarantee payment and help you avoid overdraft fees if you keep the items. You will only be charged for any items you keep after the trial period. Also note that you will see a charge transaction for the pay today amount, which is the Try Before You Buy Deposit ({insert deposit amount}) plus any additional items paid for upfront.
I hope this helps clarify any questions you might have but if there is anything else we can help with please let me know.