When a card payment fails, checkout shows the reason in a pop-up and doesn't place the order. Most failures are declines from the family's card issuer, which only the cardholder's bank can clear. Others come from a billing ZIP code that doesn't match the card, a card type your organization doesn't accept, or fraud protection at TeamSideline's payment processor, Payrix, which TeamSideline Support can check for you.
Applies to: Org admins helping families with card payments · All plans · Online checkout with Payrix card processing (registration, Store and Donations, Raise and Place Order)
Where: The checkout pop-up message; Administration > Subscription > Payment Gateways (the cards you accept)
Find out which message the family saw
- Ask the family for the exact message from the checkout pop-up, or a screenshot, and when it happened.
- Ask whether they tried more than one card, and whether each card failed with the same message.
- Find the message in the table below and follow its fix.
Messages that come from Payrix read like "reason: message (code)", for example "fraudulent: Transaction declined: Suspected Fraud (15)". The words before the colon name the reason; the number in brackets is often the same for different reasons.
What each message means and what to do
| Message | What it means | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| "The Billing Zip Code does not match your Credit Card Information. Please update and try again." | The Credit Card Zip Code entered at checkout doesn't match the ZIP code of the card's billing address. | Enter the card again with the ZIP code the card issuer has on file, such as the one on the card statement. |
| A decline from the card issuer, for example one that mentions a withdrawal limit, suspected fraud or a missing account | The family's bank declined the payment. TeamSideline can't override it. | The cardholder calls the number on the back of the card to approve the payment, then tries again, or uses another card. |
| "generic_error: Transaction processing failed (15)", especially when different cards fail the same way | Often Payrix's fraud protection blocking the payment, not the bank. | Contact TeamSideline Support with the family's name, the time and the message. Support looks the payment up in Payrix and can adjust the protection if it was a false alarm. Then the family tries again. |
| "Credit Card Type selection is invalid." | Your organization doesn't accept that card type, such as American Express or Discover. | The family uses a Visa or Mastercard. To accept another card type, contact TeamSideline Support. |
| "An error occurred while trying to process this transaction. Please contact support@teamsideline.com for additional assistance." | After several failed attempts from the same internet connection in a short time, checkout stops sending more card attempts for a while. | Wait about 15 minutes, then try again with a card the bank has confirmed. If it keeps happening, contact TeamSideline Support. |
| "The payment gateway is currently unavailable. Your credit card has not been charged. Please try your order again at a later time. If you continue to experience this issue, please contact TeamSideline support at support@teamsideline.com." | The payment processor didn't respond, and nothing was charged. | Try again later. If it continues, contact TeamSideline Support. |
Before a big registration opening
A rush of payments in the first minutes of registration can look like card testing, where fraudsters try many stolen card numbers at once, and Payrix's protection may block some real payments. If you expect many families to check out the moment registration opens, contact TeamSideline Support before the opening with the date and time. Support can prepare your organization's payment settings for it.
What you'll see
When a payment fails, the family sees the message in a pop-up, the card details are cleared, and no order is placed, so they can correct the problem and check out again. When the payment goes through, the order and the enrollment or purchase are created as usual.
If it doesn't work
- The family tried another card and it failed the same way. That points to Payrix's fraud protection rather than the cards. Contact TeamSideline Support.
- Several families report failed payments at the same time. Contact TeamSideline Support right away. It may be the fraud protection reacting to a rush, and Support can check it in Payrix.
- The bank says it approved the payment, but it still fails. Ask TeamSideline Support to look up the decline in Payrix. Support can see the decline messages from the family's recent attempts.
- The family sees a charge but no order. Check the family's Account Overview for a transaction on that date. If there isn't one, send Support the date, the amount and the card's last four digits so they can match it in Payrix.
Good to know
- Card details are entered into Payrix's secure card fields. TeamSideline keeps only the last four digits of each card, so Support matches payments by date, amount and those four digits, and refers anything else to the card issuer.
- A declined attempt can show as a pending amount on the cardholder's statement until their bank releases it. See Credit Card Holds.
- The cards your organization accepts show as card logos on Administration > Subscription > Payment Gateways. Visa and Mastercard are always accepted; American Express and Discover depend on your setup.
- Payrix's protection blocks suspicious patterns, such as many cards tried quickly, to protect your organization from fraud and chargebacks. False alarms are rare, and Support can tune them.