Buffer Account – Transaction Flows
Transaction flows
Detailed below are the standard transaction scenarios
Purchases instore or online or ATM cash withdrawals
Scenario 1: The cardholder has the full balance available
Example:
- Transaction amount = £25.59
- Cardholder’s account balance = £30.00
- Client “buffer” account = £26.00
- Required amount for authorisation = £0.00
- Transaction authorised
When the cardholder’s account balance is sufficient for the transaction value, then the transaction will be authorised and the client will not be contacted.
Transaction details can be seen by the cardholder by using the ‘pending transaction’ API call.
Any refund
Scenario 2: The cardholder has returned a purchase and the merchant has issued a refund. The amount will be credited to the account balance. The next transaction made by the cardholder would work as per the “approved transaction” scenarios above based on the transaction amount.
The transaction would show within recent transactions using this API call.
Chargeback/Fraud
Scenario 3: The cardholder has contacted customer services to dispute a transaction. The transaction is charged back to the merchant. This will show on the cardholders recent transactions as a “chargeback”.
The transaction would show within recent transactions using this API call.
Online/Offline transactions
Scenario 4: The cardholder has gone to a filling/petrol station and put the card in to the pump when a message came up advising card not allowed.
It is possible to restrict merchants using the MCC (Merchant Category Code) to stop these types of transactions.
If restrictions are not in place, then possible issue is a £1.00 auth received but financial value is £35.00 which leaves the account in negative.
Alternative authorisation scenarios
Scenario 5: The cardholder has a zero balance and the buffer account has a positive balance.
Example:
- Transaction amount = £13.00
- Cardholder’s account balance = £0.00
- Client buffer account = £50.00
- Required amount for authorisation = £13.00
- Transaction authorised
In the case of zero balance in a cardholder’s account and sufficient balance in the client buffer account, the entire transaction amount will be debited from the client’s buffer account and credited to the cardholder balance, with the card transaction will be authorised.
Scenario 6: The cardholder has a balance of £10, part of the required transaction value. The client’s buffer account has sufficient funds to process the transaction.
Example:
- Transaction amount = £23.00
- Cardholder’s account balance = £10.00
- Client “buffer” account = £1006.00
- Required amount for authorisation = £13.00
- Transaction authorised
In the case of partial balance in a cardholder’s account and sufficient balance in the client buffer account, the required amount will be debited from the buffer account and the credited to the cardholders account, then the full amount will be debited to authorize the transaction.
Transaction details can be seen by the cardholder by using the “pending transaction” API call.
Scenarios when a transaction would not be authorised
Scenario 7: The cardholder has a zero balance and the buffer account has a positive balance, however no authorisation response is received within the agreed time scales
Example:
- Transaction amount = £13.00
- Cardholder’s account balance = £0.00
- Client buffer account = £50.00
- Required amount for authorisation = £13.00
- Transaction declined
In the case of zero balance in a cardholder’s account and sufficient balance in the client buffer account, however the client does not respond in the required time frame then the transaction will be declined.
Scenario 8: The cardholder has a balance of £10, part of the required transaction value. The client’s buffer account has sufficient funds to process the transaction however no authorisation response is received within the agreed time scales.
Example:
- Transaction amount = £13.00
- Cardholder’s account balance = £5.60
- Client “buffer” account = £26.00
- Required amount for authorisation = £7.40
- Transaction declined
In the case of partial balance in a cardholder’s account and sufficient balance in the client buffer account, however the client does not respond in the required time frame then the transaction will be declined.
Scenario 9: The cardholder has a balance of £0 (zero). The client’s “buffer” account has insufficient funds to process the transaction.
Example:
- Transaction amount = £23.00
- Cardholder’s account balance = £0.00
- Client “buffer” account = £6.00
- Required amount for authorisation = £17.00
- Transaction declined
In the case of zero balance in a cardholder’s account and insufficient balance in the client buffer account the transaction will be declined and no request to the Client for review.
Scenario 10: The cardholder has a balance of £10, part of the required transaction value. The client’s buffer account has insufficient funds to process the transaction.
Example:
- Transaction amount = £23.00
- Cardholder’s account balance = £10.00
- Client “buffer” account = £6.00
- Required amount for authorisation = £7.00
- Transaction declined
In the case of partial balance in a cardholder’s account and insufficient balance in the client buffer account the transaction will be declined and no request to the Client for review.
Other transaction scenarios
Scenario 11: The cardholder has had an approved authorisation request as detailed above and then we receive a reversal notification.
Example:
- Transaction amount = £250.00
- Cardholder’s account balance = £100.00
- Client buffer account = £5000.00
- Required amount for authorisation = £150.00
- Authorisation reversal amount = £250.00
The transaction value would disappear from pending transaction list when refreshed after the reversal has been received through. A follow up authorisation would work as per Scenario 3.
Scenario 12: The client is charging fees through the Solaris platform to the cardholders. These fees and any agreed refunds would need to be displayed to the cardholder once charged.
The transaction would show within recent transactions using this API call.