Manage Transactions
Payment error messages
There are many reasons why a transaction may not have processed successfully. Different card companies provide different levels of information. Some issuers may indicate the reason for the decline (security code or billing address, insufficient funds, etc.) while others only provide generic information. For this latter category, the donor will need to call the card issuing company to receive additional information.
Declined transactions, for any reason, did not settle and should be removed from your transaction list when balancing.
Below are the most common error messages and the payment result you might see:
| Payment Result Error message | Reason For Error | Remedy |
|---|---|---|
| Billing zip failure | Incorrect billing zip code entered | Donor to verify the billing zip code with the issuing card company and retry payment. |
| CSC failure | Incorrect Card Security Code entered | Donor to verify the security code and retry payment. |
| Declined (generic) | This can happen for many reasons; incorrect card number or expiration date, suspicious activity or suspected fraud by the card issuer, card limit issues, etc. | The donor will need to call the card issuer to determine the reason for the declined status. |
| Insufficient Funds | Credit or debit card spending limit reached. | Donor must remedy with the card issuer before trying again. |
| Expired Card | Invalid Card Expiration Date | Donor to verify the credit or debit card expiration date and retry payment. |
| Invalid Account Number | Invalid Card Number | Donor to verify the credit or debit card number and retry payment. |
| (Void) Transaction Not Voided - Already Settled | Void was attempted by GiveDirect staff on a day other than the original input date. Transaction was not successfully voided. | Charity or GiveDirect staff must process a credit. For additional information on voids and credits, please see the related help guide section Issue Refunds. |
| Processor Error | This error occurs due to server, gateway, or internet interruption and is usually very temporary. | Donor to retry payment. |
Contacting donors of declined transactions
Although an error message is displayed on the donation form for missing and invalid card data, sometimes the donor is in such a rush, it may be missed. When you see a declined transaction, it is good practice to contact that donor to invite them to retry the donation or to offer your assistance. Donors will not receive an email from GiveDirect when a transaction is declined.
Likewise, when recurring payments are processed, if you have recurring transactions that were declined, you should contact these donors.
GiveDirect does send an email to recurring donors when a payment declines with instructions to correct the issue. However, many donors will not receive or respond to requests from GiveDirect. Therefore, it is good practice for the charity to follow up with their donors.
