Thread: Set cart to Authorize for $1 at checkout

Is there a way to set the cart to AUTHORIZE cards for $1 at time of checkout?

or maybe someone has better idea...
I have wholesale website and i'd really just like to make sure the customer is putting in a valid credit card at time of checkout. then, when the order is ready a few weeks later, i can go into the order and charge for full amount since we now know we have a valid card. maybe there's a better way?

You could do this with mods if you needed to yes. But you're just verifying really that the card number is valid, and can do $1. not sure that tells you much (it may. not sure).

well, the other reason i would setup like that is so we could actually CAPTURE the charge through the admin at later date. right now, we have to set gateway to MANUAL to let orders through. then grab credit card when order is ready to ship and put in virtual terminal.

just trying to reduce service time here.

maybe i could setup paypalpro as gateway and leave appconfig.TransactionMode blank? would this let orders go through... then give me capability to charge card later through the admin?

RE: "we have to set gateway to MANUAL to let orders through. then grab credit card when order is ready to ship and put in virtual terminal. just trying to reduce service time here."

Use a real-time auth-capture gateway is recommended

I know what you're trying to do; guarantee that a credit card is "good" now, so you can charge it in a few weeks.

But the relationship between "good" today and "good" next week doesn't exist. Visa places holds on cards, people run up against their limit, cards are lost, etc.

There's 20 reasons why successful authorizations today don't mean anything next week. You can't even say that an authorized card *today* can be captured *tomorrow*. An authorization is not a guarantee of anything.

With debit cards, the withdrawal is immediate. You authorize $1 (and pay a 25 cent fee to the bank for doing so), and the customer immediately sees $1 taken out of their checking account. Prepare for a irate phone call.

Sorry, I say this is a really bad idea.

thanks for the feedback guys...i agree fully.

Jon explained my post way better...

Authing $1 is actually an industry recomendation for what he is trying to do. All the real reasons stated for this not being the best solution are not really valid for WS. Most "buyers" use a company card or one for business that is in good standing. Aditionally most of my eCommerce clients (high-end luxury/fashion) use this method for retail sites as well. Mainly for CS operations. It is very bad business to multi auth (gateway problems - network delays, button re-click, etc) someones card for $1000 around the holidays esp if it is a debit card... Auths are sometimes not easy to remove before expiration. Just food for thought.