topic Declining Cards in Restaurant Operations

Declining Cards

KA — Wed, 03 Jan 2024 05:29:51 GMT

Hello all we have had some issues with people starting tabs in which we keep the cards but at the end of the night after they have left whether the card is locked or no funds available it declines and now i am stuck with an unpaid order. Any suggestions would help we are a very high volume location and my staff is very good with getting cards but that is clearly not enough.

Also another frustrating thing is when the card does not have enough to cover balance i feel the computer should do more to show the staff that there is a balance.

Re: Declining Cards

Rob — Tue, 09 Jan 2024 16:56:53 GMT

Hey @KA, thanks for reaching out to the community. I'm sorry to hear about these lost checks. I have seen restaurants typically comp. the check when this happens. They will also use credit card pre-authorization to try and prevent this.

Card Pre-Authorization Configuration & Device Setup
Card Pre-Authorization FAQ

Re: Declining Cards

KA — Tue, 09 Jan 2024 19:25:39 GMT

Yes we do Pre authorization but if they lock their card or dont have enough cash the card will only allow the pre auth and we get stuck with the balance. then i have to comp the balance

Re: Declining Cards

Rob — Thu, 11 Jan 2024 02:16:06 GMT

Unfortunately, there are no other ways to handle these transactions at the moment. Hopefully, some community members will respond if they have discovered any viable workarounds to help prevent these problems.

Re: Declining Cards

rcmck — Thu, 11 Jan 2024 02:42:08 GMT

If you are already pre-authorizing and still having issues then I think the only solution would be to just not hold cards or pre-authorize and just run the card every time they order.

Re: Declining Cards

Izzy — Thu, 11 Jan 2024 15:28:20 GMT

set the pre authorization for $100 or as high as you would like and also try to close the tab before they walk out the door

Re: Declining Cards

Caffie — Wed, 31 Jan 2024 02:44:50 GMT

You can try and increase the amount it pre-auths for. We went up to $5 and have had less declined cards. We are in a high visitor area and banks sometimes block charges when they move from state to state too quickly.