When Auto-Pay runs, some payments won't go through — and it's important to know why, who's notified, and what to do next. This article walks through what a "Declined" payment means, how Enrollsy retries it automatically, and the steps you or your customer can take to resolve it.
What does "Declined" mean?
A "Declined" payment means Enrollsy's automatic payment system tried to charge the card and the credit card company rejected it — for example, with a "Non-Sufficient Funds" error. This works the same way as swiping a card at a store and having it rejected on the spot.
If auto-pay runs and invoices remain unpaid, the payment is declined.
NOTE: If a payment is unsuccessful, it won't appear in the customer's transaction history under the Billing tab.
After the first decline, Enrollsy automatically retries the payment later that evening, then again the next morning (5:45am PT / 8:45am ET) and evening (8:45pm PT / 11:45pm ET). Enrollsy also periodically retries Auto-Pay on invoices that are 1–3 months past due.
Email Notifications
When a card declines, Admin users with the "Receive failed customer payment emails" setting turned on are notified by email for every declined credit card or ACH payment during Auto-Pay.
To manage this setting, go to My Company > Users > Admins, or click here to edit Admin email notifications.
Customers do not currently receive an email when their payment fails during Auto-Pay. A Notification Center alert and customer-facing email are planned for the future.
How to Remedy a Declined Payment
Customer Update Payment
Ask the customer to log in to their account, update their payment details, and resubmit the payment. If they're unable to do this, an Admin can contact the customer directly to collect updated card information and replace it on file. Once the card is updated, either the Admin or the customer can submit the payment again.
Admin Update Payment
An Admin can also re-run the card directly — see How to Add Payments & Charges to an Account for steps. If the card declines again, Enrollsy will show the decline reason so you can follow up with the customer about an alternate payment method. You can also check the payment gateway directly for more detail; see How to Track Your Deposits, Settlements, and Merchant Portal Logins on getting gateway access.
Credit Card Error Codes
Sometimes a decline happens because of a specific error code rather than insufficient funds. See this resource for a full list of error codes, what they mean, and the recommended action for each.
One of the most common is error code "102," which means one or more fields in the payment request contain invalid data — usually a typo or missing digit in the card number, expiration date, or security code. Double-check those fields for accuracy and resubmit.
Authorization Fees on Declined Payments
f you use CardConnect or a similar gateway (accounts set up in 2022 or earlier), a declined payment triggers an authorization fee plus any pass-through fees the card networks charge — typically under 20¢ per decline.
If you use EnrollsyPay, Till Payments/Nuvei does not charge an authorization fee for declined cards. Interested in switching to EnrollsyPay? Let us know via the chat button in Enrollsy.
To pass this cost on to customers, create a charge item such as "Failed Payment Fee" and apply it to the account whenever a payment is declined.