Saved Cards
How customers save a card with Stripe, Square or PayPal, or their PayPal account, for future payments, sending them a card set-up link, where saved cards show on the customer screen, and charging one from Debts, the Complete Job popup, the worksheet or an automation.
A saved card lets you take a payment from a customer without them being there, such as after each visit or when a balance is overdue. The customer saves the card themselves on a secure page, and you can then charge it from Debts, when you complete a job, from the worksheet, or with an automation.
What You Need
- Card payments on your plan: Included on the Pro and Team plans. On Essential you can add them with the Card Payments bolt-on.
- A provider that keeps them: Stripe or Square keep cards, and PayPal keeps cards and PayPal accounts once PayPal switches saving payment methods on for your account. Connect one (see Card Payment Provider Settings), then choose it for Online (pay links and saved cards) under Card payments on the Payment Providers screen. PayPal can keep a customer's PayPal account whichever provider takes your cards, but it can only keep a card when it takes them. Zettle only takes payments in person.
- Take Card Payments permission: Seeing, charging and removing saved cards, and sending card set-up links, needs this permission under Payments. Owners, admins and the default member role all have it.
How a Card Gets Saved
Customers always save a card themselves, on the card payment page. The page has a tick box reading Save my card with [your business name] for future payments. It starts unticked, so nothing is saved unless the customer chooses it. When PayPal keeps payment methods for your business, a second box under PayPal's buttons reads Save my PayPal account with [your business name] for future payments. There are two ways a customer gets there:
- While paying: Every card payment link shows the tick box with the card option, including the Pay now link on an invoice. If the customer ticks it and pays by card, the card is saved once the payment goes through. Ticking the box under PayPal's buttons and paying with PayPal saves their PayPal account the same way.
- A card set-up link: A link that only saves a card, or a PayPal account, and charges nothing. On this page the box has to be ticked before the customer can click Save card.
You can send a card set-up link from three places, and each opens the same Set up card payments popup:
- The customer screen: Send card set-up link in the customer's Saved Cards section, whether or not they owe anything. See Saved Cards on the Customer Screen below.
- Debts: On Accounts > Debts, click Pay on one of the customer's jobs and choose Set up card payments. The option is offered while the customer has no card that can be charged.
- Pending approvals: A saved card charge from an automation, waiting for your approval in the bell or on the Automations screen, offers Send card set-up link when the customer has no card that can be charged.
The popup works like the card payment link popup: click Create link, then Copy the link or use Send via email or Send via text. The popup shows the date the link works until. A customer has one open set-up link at a time, wherever it was sent from, so opening the popup again from any of these places brings back the same link, ready to copy or send again. Cancel link stops it working. Once the customer has saved a card the link closes, and opening it again just says Your card has been saved. Sending a Card Payment Link covers the popup in full.
The page tells the customer that your business will be able to take payments they agree to from the card, and that they can ask you to remove it at any time.
What Work Planner Keeps
The card number and security code are entered on Stripe's, Square's or PayPal's own secure form, so they never reach Work Planner and you never see them. Work Planner keeps the provider's reference for the card, plus the card type, last four digits and expiry date so you can tell cards apart. It also records when the customer agreed to saving the card, whether that was while paying or through a card set-up link, and the wording they agreed to.
When the bank issues a new expiry date and the provider updates the card, the new details come through to Work Planner by themselves. For a saved PayPal account, Work Planner keeps PayPal's reference and the account's email address. If a card or PayPal account is removed at the provider, it's removed in Work Planner too.
Saved Cards on the Customer Screen
Open the customer and look on the Details tab. The Saved Cards section sits below their contact details and lists each card the customer has saved. Once you have a provider that keeps cards (see What You Need above), the section shows for every customer, saying No saved cards yet until they save one. Without one, customers who haven't saved a card don't get the section at all.
- Card: The card type and last four digits, such as Visa •••• 4242, or for a PayPal account its email, such as PayPal (jo@example.com).
- Details: The provider, the expiry date, and the date the card was saved.
- Expired: Shown once the card is past its expiry month. An expired card can't be charged and isn't offered anywhere else, so ask the customer to save a new one.
- Remove: Asks you to confirm, then removes the card or PayPal account at the provider as well, so it can never be charged again. Use it when the customer asks you to stop using the card. They can save a card again later.
- Send card set-up link: Opens the Set up card payments popup for this customer, to send them a link that saves a card and charges nothing. It's there whether or not they owe anything or already have a card, so you can ask for a card before their first visit, or for a new one when theirs has expired.
Cards saved with a provider you have since disconnected stay on the list, but they can't be charged until you reconnect it.
Charging a Saved Card from Debts
On Accounts > Debts, click Pay (or Pay / Charge) on the job and choose Charge saved card in the Select Payment Method popup. The option names the customer's most recently saved card, adding or another saved card when there is more than one. It only appears when the customer has a card that can be charged now: not expired, and saved with a provider that is still connected.
The Charge saved card popup has these fields:
- Card: Starts on the most recently saved card. Each card shows its expiry date.
- Amount: Starts with what the customer owes on the job. Lower it to take part of the balance.
- Fee: Below the amount, a line gives roughly what the card's provider takes for a UK card and what reaches you. It follows the card you choose, as Stripe and Square charge different rates for saved cards.
- Invoices: The invoices the payment pays. It starts with the job's open invoices. Remove any it shouldn't pay, or use Attach Invoice(s) to add the customer's other open invoices. The payment fills them oldest first, and anything more than they owe is paid against the job.
- Description (optional): Starts as Payment for and the service name. It becomes the payment's description in Transactions and goes to Stripe or Square with the payment.
The charge button shows the amount, such as Charge £35.00, and charges the card straight away. If the bank declines the card or wants the customer to confirm the payment, nothing is taken.
When the Charge Is Done
- Payment taken: The provider has the money. The payment shows in Transactions, where its details popup gives the payment type as Saved card, and it pays the invoices chosen in the popup, oldest first. Anything more than they owe is paid against the job.
- Payment submitted: The provider is still confirming it. The payment shows as Pending in Transactions and completes by itself once Stripe or Square confirms it.
- Declined: The popup says why and offers Send card payment link, which opens a card payment link for the same job so the customer can pay another way. The attempt stays in Transactions as a Failed payment, which doesn't change the balance.
Why a Charge Can Fail
- Customer needs to confirm: Some banks ask the cardholder to approve a payment themselves, which can't happen while they aren't there. The message says so. Send them a card payment link instead.
- Card declined: The message includes the bank's reason when it gives one.
- Provider problem: The message says Stripe or Square couldn't take the payment and to try again in a moment. Check the payment in Transactions before you do: if the provider did take the money after all, it changes to completed once the provider reports it.
- Expired or removed card: Nothing is charged. Ask the customer to save a new card.
- Provider disconnected: The message asks you to reconnect Stripe or Square before the card can be charged.
Charging When You Complete a Job
When you complete a job from Jobs or the Planner, the Complete Job popup offers the customer's saved cards that can be charged. Set the job to Complete and turn on Card, which comes before Invoice and Paid. When there is more than one way to take the payment, such as Tap to Pay on iPhone or Android, or a second saved card, Charge with appears and starts on the most recently saved card, so you only need to change it to use another.
- Once the job is saved: The Charge saved card popup opens on the card you chose, with the amount starting at what the customer now owes on the job. Check it, then click the charge button to charge the card straight away. If nothing is owed, the popup doesn't open.
- Invoices: The popup has no Invoices field here. The payment pays the job's open invoices, oldest first, and anything more than they owe is paid against the job.
- Declined: The popup says why and nothing is taken. The job stays complete and the money stays owed, so you can send a card payment link from Debts.
- Closed without charging: The job stays complete and the money stays owed.
The rest of the popup is covered in Completion Popup.
Charging from the Worksheet
In a worksheet's Complete Job popup, set the job to Complete and switch on Charge Customer. Each of the customer's saved cards that can be charged is listed under Charge with, next to any other ways to charge, such as Tap to Pay on iPhone, Tap to Pay or card reader or Direct Debit (GoCardless).
- Charge with: Pick the saved card, shown by its type and last four digits.
- Amount to charge: Starts with the visit's charge plus anything already owed on the job.
- Charged when you save: The job is saved as complete first, then the card is charged.
Charging records the payment itself, so Charge Customer and Mark as Paid can't both be on. Once the card is charged, the job's popup shows which card was charged and how the payment stands, and the job stays on the worksheet until the worksheet is submitted. If the card is declined, the message says why, nothing is taken, and the job stays saved as complete. The popup's other money fields are covered in Editing Worksheet Item Payment and Reference Fields.
Charging Automatically When a Job Is Completed
An automation can charge a saved card for you. In Settings > Automations, click New automation and choose the Charge a saved card when a job is completed recipe, or use Charge a saved card as the action in an advanced automation.
- What it charges: What the job owes when the automation runs, from the customer's most recently saved card that can still be charged. If nothing is owed, nothing is taken.
- Approval first: The recipe starts on Require my approval first, like the GoCardless charge recipe, so each charge waits under Pending approvals until you approve it. Choosing Charge a saved card as the action in an advanced automation starts there too. Change When this triggers to Run automatically once you are happy with it.
- No saved card: Nothing is taken. Under Pending approvals, in the bell or on the Automations screen, a charge for a customer with no card that can be charged says they haven't saved a card, and Approve stays unavailable. If your role can take card payments, Send card set-up link beside it opens the Set up card payments popup for the customer.
- No double charges: Each completion is charged once at most, so a recurring job is charged once per visit. If the customer already has a card or Direct Debit payment going through, the automation leaves them alone rather than charging again.
- Declined: Nothing is taken, and the attempt shows in Transactions as a Failed payment.
- Payment description: What the payment is called, starting as Payment for {service_name}.
- Days after the job is completed (optional): Waits that many days after the job is completed before charging.
Related articles
- Card Payment Page: What the customer sees when they pay or save a card.
- Sending a Card Payment Link: Creating and sending links, including card set-up links.
- Customer Detail View: Where the Saved Cards section sits on the customer screen.
- Taking a Payment: The other options in the Debts Pay popup.
- Completion Popup: Completing a job, and charging a saved card as you do.
- Creating an Automation: Choosing a recipe, and setting when it runs and whether it waits for your approval.
- Automation Approvals: Approving charges that wait for you.
- Refunding a Card Payment: Giving back some or all of a card payment.