Basic credit card question

[david71]

Hey -

I am fairly new to 3dcart (recently purchased a company that is using 3dcart) and am trying to get up to speed with it's features and functionality. Anyway, when an order is placed on 3dcart for my products I don't know what the shipping charges will be until the order is manufactured, boxed and run through our shipping system. With that said, is there a way to capture the credit card information when the order is placed but not process the card until all charges have been identified?

Currently, the customers are not giving their credit card information when placing the order and I am having to call them the next day and take it from them over the phone. In my opinion this is very unproductive but I don't know if there is a better way to do it.

Any thoughts will be very much appreciated.

[cbsteven]

You will probably want to use Authorize.net for processing the cards. When the order is placed you need a total amount to pre-authorize, but then you can "capture" the charge at a later date for any amount that is that amount, or less.

So lets say your shipping costs are typically between $20-$150. I would create a shipping method that is $150, and explain to the customer during the checkout process that this is just a pre-authorization and that the final total will likely be less than that.

Then when you know how much the shipping cost will be, you go into the order in the administrator panel and adjust it to, say, $50. Then you will "capture" the pre-authorized charge for the new adjusted total.

Does that make sense?

[elightbox]

Another option is to use Authorize.net CIM (Customer Information Manager) which is integrated with 3dcart (additional cost from A.net)
-You will also have to require each customer to sign-in before placing an order.
-You will also have to have each customer agree with a checkout question that shipping charges will be charged later.

With CIM the customer profile is saved at A.net and on their 3dcart account allowing for easy re-ordering, and you can go in at a later time to charge the customer. Of course the customer can cancel the card, but then you would not ship the order.

I thought we'd get lots of customer complaints about CIM when we started using it, but we have not had a single complaint. We have a disclaimer saying that "We do not save any actual credit card numbers" which is true, and seems to satisfy customers concerns.

[elightbox]

Note that if they use PayPal, Google Checkout, or Checkout by Amazon, they will not see the checkout questions and you cannot charge them a 2nd charge later.

[david71]

Thanks for the thoughts. I am going to investigate each of these to see if they will work in the quirky environment that I find myself in.

David

[Pack Secure]

We find ourselves occasionally giving a partial refund for shipping, as the calculator set up is not a exact science.

Do you find this situation typical for your industry?

We have 3 sites on 3 different hosts and none of them have the ability you are looking for.


With that said, is there a way to capture the credit card information when the order is placed but not process the card until all charges have been identified?

This is a tough one as we do not have access to the customers card on the sellers end. Unless you do as someone else suggested and charge on the high side and refund the difference, seems like you would have to call the next day with the exact amount.

Things are tricky with PSI compliance.

Good Luck

Mary

Pack Secure Packaging Shipping Supply Specialists