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Updating troubleshoot-failed-payments > resolve-a-payment-failure #24440

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92 changes: 39 additions & 53 deletions src/content/docs/billing/troubleshoot-failed-payments.mdx
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---
title: Troubleshoot failed payments
title: Resolve a payment failure
pcx_content_type: overview
sidebar:
order: 12
---

If payment for a new Cloudflare plan, add-on, or subscription fails, you may need to ask your bank to remove a hold, update your Cloudflare billing information, or confirm that your account has sufficient funds
This article will help if you are receiving errors about your payment failing when attempting to purchase something, change an existing subscription, pay an invoice or an outstanding balance. You may see one of the following error messages:

If payment for a recurring charge for a Cloudflare plan, add-on, or subscription is unsuccessful after five (5) days, your account is automatically downgraded to a Free plan. Downgrading to a Free plan does not suspend your website, but you will lose any subscriptions or add-on services associated with the Pro, Business, or Enterprise plan.
* Contact your bank for assistance. An error occurred while collecting payment.
* Payment error: authorization failed for [“example.com”]
* failed in ActionAppendSubscription: failed to update user subscription: failed to apply object products: failed to collect latest invoice XXXXXX for subscription YYYYY: Contact your bank for assistance. An error occurred while collecting payment.

Alternatively, you may receive an email from us about a subscription renewal payment failure with the subject: “[Cloudflare]: We couldn't process your renewal payment” which states “We were unable to process your renewal payment”.

:::caution
The five-day grace period for failed payments on recurring Cloudflare charges includes weekends and holidays.
:::
## Automatic retries and product removal
If the failed payment relates to a recurring charge for a Cloudflare plan, add-on, or subscription then after a five (5) day grace period, your account is automatically downgraded to a Free plan. Downgrading to a Free plan does not suspend your website, but you will lose any subscriptions or add-on services associated with the Pro, Business, or Enterprise plan.

After confirming your payment method information, Cloudflare suggests [manually updating your plan type](/billing/change-plan/) and subscriptions using the Cloudflare dashboard.
To avoid this, follow the Causes & Solution sections below to resolve the failing payment and retry. If you are unable to resolve the issue within the 5 day grace period, you’ll need to manually re-subscribe to these products. You may need to [pay an overdue balance](/billing/pay-invoices-overdue-balances/#pay-an-overdue-balance) relating to the five day grace period, if applicable.

## Payment method validation
## Causes
* Your card details are incorrect
* There are not enough funds in your account
* You did not pass 3D Secure (3DS) correctly
* Your bank is rate limiting payments from us
* Your bank is declining the payment

All changes to payment methods must now pass validation before being accepted. An error will result if the payment details are incorrect.
## Solution
### Check your details & contact your bank
#### Check your card details
* Check your address is valid and matches the one registered with your bank for the payment method you are using
* Check that the Card Verification Value (CVC) you entered is correct for your card
* If you are using PayPal, check for a verification email to your PayPal email address and follow the instructions to authorize

Below are common validation methods as well as next steps to rectify the issue:
#### Check you have enough funds
Double check your payment method’s balance to ensure that your account has enough funds.

### Address validation
#### Correctly authorise your transaction with 3D Secure (3DS)
You may be using a bank that mandates the use of 3D Secure (3DS) for online card transactions. For one off or first time subscription payments, you need to be prepared to pass 3DS authentication when you attempt the payment in the Cloudflare dashboard. Your bank will contact you to authorise the transaction in real time. This contact typically comes via an SMS or push notification from your bank’s mobile application.

The address entered is checked against a database to verify if it is correct. The verification will fail if there is a mismatch.
Please note that for customers of Indian banks, 3DS is mandatory for all transactions as per the mandate from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI).

### Card address validation
#### Contact your bank if purchasing / renewing Registrar domains
If you were purchasing or renewing multiple domains via [Cloudflare Registrar](/registrar) each domain will be charged as a separate transaction. This may be flagged as fraud by your credit card company. You will need to contact your bank in order to confirm and resolve this.

The address entered on the Cloudflare Dashboard is validated against the address that the card is registered with at the card provider. The verification will fail if there is a mismatch.
#### Contact your bank to understand & fix the declined payment
Cloudflare’s payment system does not know why a payment was declined, so you should contact your bank to confirm specifically why they declined the payment.

### CVC validation
### Try your payment again
Once you have checked the items above, you should try your transaction again by visiting the Cloudflare dashboard. If the payment that failed was a renewal payment, we will retry automatically 5 times in 5 days. However, we recommend you retry the payment manually in the dashboard to receive instant feedback. To do this:

The CVC code is verified against the card entered. The verification will fail if there is a mismatch. The card will also be rejected if it is not accepted for use on our website.
1. Log into the [Cloudflare dashboard](https://dash.cloudflare.com) and select your account.
2. Go to **Manage Account > Billing**.
3. Go to **Invoices and documents**.
4. Click **Pay Now** next to your invoice OR from the Invoice PDF, click the payment link.
5. Follow the on screen instructions to try again.

### Card type validation

The card type will be validated, which means that card types that we do not support will fail. Not all card types are supported by Cloudflare. As a result, some Visa and Mastercard methods may not be supported.

### Email validation

A verification email is sent to the address on file for your PayPal account.

## Common reasons for failed payments

### Bank hold

The bank or card issuer has placed a hold or other similar measure that prevents Cloudflare from charging the card on file. The email you received alerting you about the failed payment lists the specific reason for the decline.

Contact your bank to check for any restriction that would prevent Cloudflare from successfully processing your payment.

### Incorrect billing information

The billing information that Cloudflare has on file is inaccurate or incomplete. Also, the credit card on file might have expired.

:::note
Gift cards and pre-payment cards may not be accepted for payment as they are not associated with a billing address.
:::

To ensure all billing information is current and accurate, refer to [Updating your Cloudflare billing information](/billing/update-billing-info/).

### Insufficient funds

Cloudflare was unable to collect payment due to insufficient funds in the account on file. Contact your financial institution to ensure fund availability.

### Cloudflare Registrar domain purchases

Cloudflare processes payments for Registrar domain transfers one at a time, which may trigger a failed payment for users that purchase multiple domains at a time.

For example, if you register five domains in one day, you will be charged five times. This may be flagged as fraud by your credit card company.

Contact your financial institution to ensure that this payment will be processed.
### Try a new payment method
If you cannot resolve this using your current payment method, you may wish to try an alternative payment method. We support multiple different credit card types and PayPal. To try this, refer [add a new payment method](/billing/update-billing-info/#update-payment-methods).
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