This feature is currently in beta with improvements being rolled out over time.
ROLLER POS supports card pre-authorization for tabs.
Card pre-authorization enables your venue staff to place a hold on funds required by your guests to settle their tab at the end of their visit, without adding friction during the ordering experience. Later, the pre-authorization can be used to quickly settle the tab, improving staff efficiency and reducing payment risks.
This guide walks through card pre-authorization frequently asked questions.
To learn more about how card pre-authorization works at POS, including how you can pre-authorize a card for a new tab and other set up information, read the guide Take card pre-authorization for tabs at POS.
How do card pre-authorizations work at POS?
If your venue is using ROLLER Payments, then you can enable card pre-authorization at POS. When creating a tab, your staff can choose to capture a pre-authorization from a card provided by your guests.
To learn more about how card pre-authorization works at POS, read the guide Take card pre-authorization for tabs at POS.
How does card pre-authorization work for guests paying their tab?
When a pre-authorization is made against a guest’s card, the funds captured will be held by the bank.
When settling a tab at POS, one of the following scenarios will typically occur:
If the total tab amount exceeds the held funds (eg if a tip has been added at the end of the guest’s visit or more items have been added to the booking) then ROLLER will update and charge the total amount. When the tab is settled pre-authorized card will be charged the total and the held funds will be spent.
If the total tab amount is lower than the amount of held funds, then once the booking has been paid the excess funds will be released back to the guest’s bank account (eg if the initial hold was $100 and the tab totalled $40, then $60 will be released back to the guests).
Card pre-authorizations only last for 24 hours before expiring and being released. When funds are expired and released, they can no longer be used to pay for the tab. This means it’s important that you close out tabs at the end of each trading day.
Is there any configuration required by me before I get started using this feature?
You’ll need to enable this feature within Venue Manager.
You should be aware of local laws and legislation surrounding card pre-authorization and the risks you take when using pre-authorization at your venue.
I don't see the card pre-authorization option when I create a new tab?
If you can't see the card pre-authorization option when you create a new tab, it means you haven't configured this yet in Venue Manager. From Venue Manager, go to Apps > Point of Sale > Settings and check the box for Enable card pre-auth.
Do I need to be on a specific subscription plan to use this feature?
This feature is available on all ROLLER subscription plans. But, you do need to be using ROLLER Payments in order to access this feature.
Why are we adding this feature?
For venues with food and beverage operations, card pre-authorization is a key requirement, especially in the adult social space. Card pre-authorization will allow you to effectively manage your open tabs and secure payment, as well as accurately and seamlessly process tips.
Does it cost me to use this feature?
Yes, using card pre-authorizations will incur fees.
Fees are accrued when funds are initially held from a card (when a card pre-authorization is added to a tab) or when making an adjustment to the hold amount (if the tab exceeds the initial hold and the amount is adjusted to reflect the new tab amount). These fees will appear in your transactional invoices under Network fees.
How do fees work with pre-authorization?
Service fees are not available for tabs, including tabs with card pre-authorization.
What should I set my pre-authorization amount to when creating a tab at POS?
This depends on your venue and the average spend. It's recommended a a venue sets a default pre-authorized amount for a tab in the POS, using the setting: Minimum card pre-authorization amount. Learn more.
What happens when a card pre-authorization expires?
Card pre-authorizations only last for 24 hours before expiring and the funds are released.
When funds are expired and released, they can no longer be used to take payment. So it’s important that you close out tabs at the end of each trading day.
Can any staff at my venue add a card-pre-authorization to a tab?
Yes, there are no role permissions or limitations around which staff can charge a pre-authorization.
Can my staff still add items to the tab if the pre-authorization fails?
If a card pre-authorization fails when you're creating a new tab, then your guest can provide an alternative card and staff can attempt to pre-authorize again. If staff don’t have a valid card to pre-authorize, then they can still create a tab, they’ll just have to take manual payment from the guest at the end of their visit.
Why would a card pre-authorization fail?
Although card pre-authorizations rarely fail, there are a few reasons why this could happen:
The card has insufficient funds: The guest will not be able to settle the tab if this is their only payment method.
The card does not support pre-authorization: Although most cards can be pre-authorized, rarely, a card will not support this functionality. A different card should be used for the pre-authorization.
ROLLER will always provide you with useful notifications to understand and navigate errors when attempting to pre-authorize a card.
Do all cards support pre-authorization?
Most cards support pre-authorization. But, some cards do not. When this happens, ROLLER will provide POS staff with useful notifications to understand and navigate any issues.
Which cards support pre-authorization?
Most cards support pre-authorizations. These cards include:
Visa
Mastercard
American Express
Discover
But, if a card is not supported or if there are issues pre-authorizing funds on one of the above cards, ROLLER will provide POS staff with useful notifications to understand and navigate issues.
Does card pre-authorization work differently for credit cards and debit cards?
A pre-authorisation hold on a credit card will appear as an adjustment to the available limit on the guest’s card (eg their credit card limit is reduced by the amount that’s held by the pre-authorization).
A pre-authorisation hold on a debit card will appear as an adjustment of the available balance on the account for the duration of the pre-authorization.
Can a single booking have multiple cards pre-authorized for use?
No, bookings can only have one active pre-authorized card.
What if a tab has a pre-authorized card attached, with funds held, but the tab was paid using another payment method? What happens to the held funds?
In this situation, the pre-authorized funds would be released back to the guest.
Card pre-authorizations only last for 24 hours before expiring and funds are automatically released back to the guest’s account. When funds are expired and released, they can no longer be used to pay for the tab. This means it’s important that you close out tabs at the end of each trading day.
During a booking, if a tab has a pre-authorized card attached, can we manually adjust the amount of funds that are held?
No, not for now. The pre-authorized amount can only be manually adjusted when the tab is initially created and a card attached.
Can I set the initial card pre-authorized hold to $0
No, you must set a minimum value greater than $0 for the pre-authorized amount.
What if a guest has enough funds for the initial pre-authorization, but not enough funds to pay for the whole tab if it exceeds the initial amount?
When adjusting the amount of funds held (eg the tab exceeds the initial pre-authorization amount) and the guest does not have enough funds to cover this new total, your staff will be notified. If this happens, we recommend you replace the authorized card with a new card at POS.
Can I input a card number to pre-authorize it?
No, to pre-authorize a card, it must be swiped/tapped against a card reader.
Can I block some POS devices from allowing pre-authorization?
No, there are no POS device settings to block specific POS devices from taking a card pre-authorization.
Once card pre-authorization is enabled, All pos devices can be used to accept a pre-authorization against a tab.
Do I need to use the pre-authorized card to pay for a tab? Can I choose not to use the pre-authorized card and use a different payment method?
You don’t need to pay for the tab with the pre-authorized card. Once the tab has been paid (using any payment method or updating the authorized card) and there are excess held funds (which in this case, will be all of the held funds) then those funds will be released back to the guest’s bank account.
Can I see card pre-authorization usage in Venue Manager?
Card pre-authorizations will appear in your daily summary report.
Once the tab has been paid, funds paid by pre-authorized cards will appear as regular card payments. These will appear in the payments tab on the booking.
What happens if POS is offline?
You can’t pre-authorize a card when POS is offline.
What does it mean if I get a 'there was an issue capturing card' error?
The 'there was an issue capturing card' error happens when the payment cannot be processed. Most of the time, this is because there's insufficient funds on the authorized card.