General
Credit Card Number Sharing: Security Measures Across Reservations
In the dynamic landscape of hospitality and reservation management, safeguarding sensitive information, particularly credit card details, is not just a best practice—it's a regulatory requirement. One of the primary reasons credit card numbers cannot ...
Repost an Unsettled CC Transactions
A transaction might be returned as unsettled by the credit card processor during the batch settlement for various reasons, including: Insufficient Funds*, Authorization Declined*, Technical Issues*, Communication Errors*, Cardholder Dispute*, or ...
Credit Card Batch "Out Of Sequence"
Settling a credit card batch involves reconciling and finalizing credit card transactions between Visual Matrix and your credit card processor. "Settling a batch" essentially means concluding and processing the authorized credit card transactions to ...
Pre-authorizing a guest credit card before check-in
Pre-authorizing a credit card in advance with the goal of expediting the check-in process and minimizing delays is not recommended. Such pre-authorization should only be undertaken when the intention is to secure a deposit. Pre-authorization is ...
Authorization Release at Check-Out
During the check-out process, when we release an authorization, our system transmits a transaction with a $0.00 amount to supersede the initial authorization. It's important to note that we do not execute a traditional "void" operation on the ...
Saving the CVV number of a Credit Card in Visual Matrix
The CVV number is data that cannot be retained or stored. A card verification code or value (referred to as CAV2, CVC2, CVV2, or CID, depending on the payment brand) is a 3- or 4-digit number found on a payment card's front or back. These values are ...
Regular Refunds vs Independent/Blind Refunds
Regular refunds and independent/blind refunds are two different concepts related to the process of issuing refunds, typically in a financial or business context. Here's an explanation of the key differences between them. Regular Refunds Regular ...
Utilizing Visual Matrix to Mitigate Chargebacks: Strategies and Best Practices
A hotel can utilize Visual Matrix to help prevent chargebacks through several strategies. Remember that while these strategies can help reduce the risk of chargebacks, they may not eliminate them entirely. Collaboration with payment processors, ...
See the list of authorizations (Desktop)
There is not a list of every authorization in the system, however, you can view the detail of any card on a reservation to see the authorization(s) on that card. - Open the reservation, click on the Method of Payment drop down and choose credit card ...
EMV Payment posting on a Folio
The information showed in this article only applies to Elavon and Fortis Pay processors. When a credit card payment is posted through an EMV device, some extra informations will show on the folio. - APPN: Type of credit card used. - AID: Application ...
Saving Credit Cards: Manual Entry vs PinPads EMV?
In Visual Matrix Since every credit card number has been tokenized, Visual Matrix does not keep credit card information on its systems. To ensure the highest level of security, we collaborated with many credit card gateways/processors (Shift4, ...
Credit Card Error "serv not allowed"
"Serv not allowed" does not mean "Server not allowed" but "Service not allowed". It is not a technical issue, but really a transactional issue. This is a common decline message for transactions that are blocked by the bank that issued the card. For ...
Credit Card Authorization: Current Auth Amount vs Previous Auth Amount
The difference between these two types of authorization is very important to understand. Both can be found in the Credit Card window and should normally be identical most of the time. Definitions The "Current Auth Amount" is the amount that Visual ...
See how a credit card was entered in Visual Matrix
When a property is using EMV, Visual Matrix does not show how the credit card was entered/captured. It will show "Y" or "N" in the "Swiped" column of the credit card details but this may not recognize every method like the contactless chip. There is ...
The Life of a Credit Card Authorization
Source: https://midigator.com/blog/the-authorization-process/
My processor is changing, do I have to do anything with Visual Matrix?
Indeed, the transition process depends on whether the change is at the processor or the gateway level. Processor Change If the change is within processors (e.g., Elavon, Shift4, Fortis Pay), and the gateway/platform remains the same, there is ...
From Visual Matrix to the Pin Pad and back, the Process Flow of a Credit Card Request
(1) The Processor response includes the token and successful or decline of the authorization (more information about decline reasons). (2) It is important for the Front Desk to confirm the authorization in Visual Matrix BEFORE the guest retrieves the ...
Enter a Voice Authorization on VM PMS (Desktop)
On VM Desktop PMS, you cannot enter a Voice Auth if your interface is not offline or if the credit card is not declined first. If you had to get voice authorization because your interface was offline or because of an outage and now you need to enter ...
Why would the Credit Card batch not Settle
What happens during the credit card settlement process? When Visual Matrix tries to settle the daily credit card batch, it checks with the gateway portal (Lighthouse, Fusebox, ...) to make sure that the number of transactions and the total of all ...
What if the CLEAR button is not used before entering a new Credit Card number
If you do not use the CLEAR button before entering a new credit card number and process to the payment, the old credit card number will be the one that will be charged. Whether you are working on VM Desktop or VM Cloud, it is imperative to use the ...
Guest Credit Card authorized and approved on the Pin Pad but it not showing on Visual Matrix
This normally happens due to the card being pulled out prematurely of the pinpad before Visual Matrix completes the tokenization process. When a guest inputs its credit card, he/she will pulled it out when the pin pad will beep, thinking the process ...
Guest Credit Card swiped over the OTA Virtual Credit Card
It happens! But don't panic, the original credit card you need to use is still on file! This can occasionally happen during the check-in process. Instead of doing the check-in with the virtual credit card and going onto Folio B to save the guest's ...
Message "no detail records available to settle" when trying to settle the batch
This message will show when you try to settle a batch that is empty and that has no transaction in it. This means that there was no credit card transaction that day. It is not an error, only a status of the situation. Related Article(s) Check if the ...
Find the Voice Auth to use in the Voice Auth field (Voice Auth vs Voice ID)
A Voice Authorization is a security measure used by the credit card industry to ensure that a particular purchase is being authorized by the actual card-holding customer and not someone else. A voice authorization request occurs when your customer’s ...
Following the Status of my Credit Card Gateway Outage
Sometimes, you cannot process a credit card because there is an issue with your Gateway - Shift4, Elavon, Moneris or Tsys. Each of them has its own URL you can go to follow the status of an outage: - Fortis: https://status.epicpay.com/ - Elavon: ...
A future guest has been authorized by mistake
How long does an authorization hold last? In the case of debit cards, authorization holds can fall off the account, thus rendering the balance available again, anywhere from one to eight business days after the transaction date, depending on the ...
Pinpads are not working, not responding, or show offline
If you have multiple pinpads and some are working while others are not, or if the message is Lane Closed (either a port is not forwarded anymore or the pin pad is updating), please contact your gateway provider. 1. Make sure your computer is ...
Credit Card Encryption Key (Desktop)
This article is only for VM Desktop users who process credit cards through Vital/Visanet/Tsys or Moneris. What the encryption key looks like The Encryption Key is a USB key/stick with a security 3/4kb file on it without which you will not be able to ...
Database Encryption does not match Encryption Key, you will not be able to see credit cards (Desktop)
This article is only for VM Desktop users who process credit cards through Vital/Visanet/Tsys or Moneris. What does this message mean? If your credit card processor is Vital/Visanet/Tsys or Moneris, you have plugged into your Server computer an ...
Release an Authorization
Once an authorization is done, the only way to release it is to use it. Regardless of the action taken, whether it's releasing an authorization, releasing held funds, or issuing a refund to a credit card, it's important to note that funds will not be ...
Authorizing a credit card vs actually charging the card
Authorizing and charging a credit card are two distinct processes in the context of a transaction. Authorization is a preliminary step to check and reserve funds, while charging involves the actual transfer of funds from the cardholder to the ...
See the list of authorizations (Cloud)
There is not a list of every authorization in the system, however, you can view the detail of any card on a reservation to see the authorization(s) on that card. - Open the reservation and go to the Payment Info; - Click on the pencil to open the ...
Token Number vs Real Credit Card Number
What is a Token Number? A token number is the credit card number encrypted. The number is only valid between Visual Matrix and the credit card processor. There are multiple types of token. Visual Matrix does encounter 2 types: - Merchant ...
Credit Card Authorization Error Responses
If there is an error, then it means that Visual Matrix does work. The error is the response that the processor is sending. The error number (OE:0000045 for example) is what will help you find what the issue is. You can find an explanation to some of ...
Refund a Settled Credit Card Payment in a City Ledger Account
Once a credit card payment has been settled, whether it is in a folio or in the City Ledger, it cannot be voided. A refund has to be posted. As you cannot post a refund directly in a City Ledger Account like you would post a payment, you will need to ...
Credit Card Swipers
Credit Card Swipers are Plug and Play devices. They should show a green light when not being used. If they show a yellow or red light, the device more than likely needs to be replaced. If the light is green on the swiper and swiping a card in Visual ...
Credit Card Transaction Process
We do not think much about what goes into making the credit card process work. Simply insert a credit or debit card into a machine, and a few seconds later, the transaction is complete. However, behind this convenient payment option, the procedure ...