We run a small online store selling handmade ceramics. Last week our payment processor flagged six transactions and put a hold on a chunk of our funds. The orders were ordinary: same average amount, same shipping address as the billing address, no weird patterns. Customer support says it was 'automated risk review' but won't give specifics. Has this happened to anyone else? How did you get it resolved without losing the customers?
Payment Holds
I got flagged for transactions that looked completely normal
What processor? That makes a big difference. Some are way more trigger-happy than others.
We had something similar with a handful of orders oast spring. Turned out the flag was because several customers used the same card BIN range (all from one credit union) and our average order value had jumped a bit that month. Nothing fraudulent, just a statistical blip. We provided tracking numbers and proof of delivery for the completed ones, and the hold lifted after about 10 days. The advice I got was to keep documentation ready before you call, not after.
Automated systems don't care that your transactions look normal to you. They look at velocity, device fingerprints, IP geolocation mismatches, even how fast someone types their card number. You probably won't get a real explanation.
It's a mid-sized processor, not one of the giant ones. I don't want to name them yet because I'm still hoping they'll release the funds. The frustrating part is they won't tell me which specific rule triggered it. I've sent them order confirmations and shipping receipts but it's been three days with no update.
Did the customers get charged and then refunded, or are the charges still pending? That changes what you should tell them.
Also check if any of those six orders came from the same city or zip. Sometimes a single bad actor will use a bunch of stolen cards in one area, and the processor flags everything nearby. Not saying that's what happened, but it's worth ruling out.
Three days is nothing. Ours took almost three weeks to fully resolve. We ended up eating the cost of one order because the customer got impatient and disputed it. If I were you I'd proactively email the affected customers, explain there's a temporary payment review, and offer to hold their order or cancel with a full refund. Most people are fine with that if you're upfront.
seabass_77 has the right idea. Silence is what makes customers file chargebacks. A short, non-technical note saying 'your payment is going through a routine verification' usually buys you a few days.
I did reach out to two of them yesterday. One was fine, the other asked if we'd been hacked. I didn't know what to say. I'll use the 'routine verification' line for the rest.
For what its worth, we switched to a processor that gives us a dashboard with actual decline reasons instead of vague 'risk' flags. It cost a little more per transaction but the transparency saved us hours of guessing. Might be worth shopping around once this is settled.
Have you tried calling instead of emailing? We got nowhere withh tickets but a phone rep escalated it and the hold was released same day. Depends on the company though.
One more thing: make sure your business address and phone number are on the website footer and the receipt emails. Processors sometimes flag accounts where that info is missing or doesn't match their records. Small thing, but it can add up.
Did they say anything about a reserve? Some processors will hold a percentage of future volume for a few months even after this batch clears. That's the part that really hurt us last year year.