1 Introduction
Now that your merchant setup and mandatory testing is complete, you are ready to process transactions. All sales transactions begin and end with the cardholder. The cardholder presents the card as payment for goods or services in person at your POS terminal, via telephone, mail, fax, or over the internet. There are three steps that lead towards the completion of the process. Authorization and Electronic Data Capture, Funding and Settlement.
2 Authorization and Electronic Data Capture
Electronic Data is captured by swiping the card through your POS terminal or by keying cardholder’s information into your POS terminal. A card holder’s information is made up of cardholder name, cardholder number, expiration date and counterfeit detection value. Once the data is entered into your POS terminal, it is passed on to Global Payments for authorization.
The cardholder status is checked by the card issuer (Visa or MasterCard), and the requested sales amount is compared to the cardholder’s available spending limit.
If the card is approved, the issuer posts the approved amount against the cardholder’s credit line and the card issuer provides the authorization approval. An authorization response (authorization number) is returned by the card issuer to the merchant through Global Payments, the processor (POS terminal).
3 Funding
Funding is the process of moving funds from the cardholder’s account to the merchant’s account. The issuing bank credits the merchant’s Global Payments account with the amount of the authorized transaction.
4 Settlement
Settlement is the process of moving the authorized transaction from you to the cardholder’s financial institution.
5 Completing Electronic Deposit Transaction With Cardholder Present
It is imperative that the following steps are taken when processing a transaction with the cardholder present.
6 Completing Telephone, Mail, and Fax Electronic Deposit Transactions
This practice is one that is strongly discouraged, but if necessary, it is imperative that the following steps are taken. Be sure to shred this information after goods have been shipped or services are completed.
7 Completing Transactions Manually with an Imprinter
The majority of our departments have switched to POS terminals for processing. When proper guidelines are followed, provides enhanced security and flexibility for clients. If you are among the remaining few who have not already done so, it is imperative that the following steps be taken when completing transactions using a manual imprinter.
8 Determining Card Validity
9 Credit Card Refunds
The original card number must be used for refunds; NO CASH REFUNDS are to be issued.
10 Chargebacks
A chargeback is a transaction being disputed by the cardholder or their issuing institution. If you receive a chargeback your general ledger account is debited for the amount in question. Reasons for chargebacks include a cardholder dispute or an error in handling on the part of a merchant’s staff. Chargebacks are rare if proper authorizations and processing procedures are followed. In order to properly address chargeback issues, merchants must retain copies of sales drafts with cardholder information. These should be safeguarded with limited access. You can significantly reduce chargebacks by taking the following precautions:
11 Receipting Credit Card Payments
For POS Users
For Manual Swipe Machine Users