Card declined or no answer from the bank

A decline is an answer

When the screen says Card declined. Try another card., the bank answered and said no. Nothing was charged. Tap Try card again with a different card, or tap Back to ticket and take cash.

The card's bank didn't answer. Try again. is also safe. The card's bank was unavailable, nothing was charged, and the same card often works on the next try.

No answer is not a decline

Sometimes the terminal sends the payment to the bank and never hears back. The card may have been charged even though the terminal didn't get the approval. The screen shows a message such as "We did not hear back from the card reader. This card may already have been charged", with "The reader has stopped. Nothing more is coming from it." underneath.

After that, the next time anyone on this terminal charges a card, a full screen appears: Check before charging again, with "The last card on this till may already have been charged" and the amount. It stays even if the app restarts. It goes away after the next approved or declined card.

Check before charging again

1. On Check before charging again, tap Back to ticket. Don't run the card yet.
2. Ask the customer to check their banking app or statement for a pending charge of that amount.
3. Check the card batch in Reports > Batches, and the payment app's history on the terminal.
4. If the customer was charged, don't charge again. Contact Surge support with the sale number and the amount.
5. If you're sure nothing was charged, charge the card and tap Run the card anyway when the screen appears.