In this article you’ll learn about failed refunds in Spektrix Payments. We’ll guide you through why a refund might fail, and how to manage a failed refund. This article is for users of Spektrix Payments powered by Adyen.
What is a Failed Refund?
A failed refund occurs when a refund is successful in Spektrix, but fails in Adyen. When a refund fails in Adyen, the funds that are intended to be returned to a Customer will be returned back to your Adyen Merchant account.
Why do Failed Refunds occur?
Refunds can fail for the following reasons:
- Insufficient in-process funds on account
- Payment Already fully refunded
- Already fully disputed, no balance available for new requested refund
- Adyen User Account Permissions
- Incorrect Payment status
- Refund Failed due to Scheme Rejection
- System Errors when performing a refund
- Account configuration error
- Disputed Transaction
- Interac Payment refunded outside of original transaction date
How does Spektrix display Failed Refunds?
In Spektrix, each refund will be assigned a TX Code:
A TX code means the request for refund has been authorised. However, a refund may fail when processed through Adyen.
If the refund subsequently fails, you’ll receive an email notification. Go to the next section for more information.
Will I be informed about Failed Refunds?
If any refunds have failed, an email notification will go to recipients you’ve specified in your Spektrix system. To learn more about notifications, including how to add recipients to the notification list, read Spektrix Payments Failed Refund Emails.
In the email you’ll see the following information:
- Transaction Code: This is the Tx Code in Spektrix, known as Merchant Reference in Adyen
- PSP Reference: A unique 16 digit code assigned by Adyen to each transaction
- Amount: The refund amount
- Reason: The reason why the refund failed
You can then search for the transactions in your Adyen Essentials Dashboard.
How to troubleshoot Failed Refunds?
The following sections should help you troubleshoot any failed refunds. Go to the relevant section depending on the reason for the failed refund:
- Insufficient in-process funds on account
- Payment Already fully refunded
- Already fully disputed, no balance available for new requested refund
- Adyen User Account Permissions
- Incorrect Payment status
- Refund Failed due to Scheme Rejection
- System Errors when performing a refund
- Account configuration error
- Disputed Transaction
Insufficient in-process funds on account
When you issue a refund, the funds are deducted from in-process funds (also known as available balance) in your Adyen Account.
In-process funds consist of:
- Pending: The gross amount of Sales and Refunds that have not yet been settled by the card scheme or payment method
- Next Payout: The current amount to be transferred to your bank account at the next payout
The Next Payout amount will increase or decrease as sales and refunds are processed. In some cases the balance of your Adyen account may result in a negative balance.
A negative balance will prevent you from processing any refunds. To resolve this, you’ll need to add funds to your Adyen Account.
If you receive an email indicating a refund has failed due to Insufficient in-process fund on account, contact Support. Our team will send you a payment link where you can add funds to your Adyen account through a bank transfer.
TIP: The payment link is valid for 10 days. Once you’ve made a payment, it will take two business days (EUR and USD) or three business days (GPB and CAD) to clear in your Adyen account.
Once your payment has cleared, you’ll be able to process the refund by following the steps in How to process a Failed Refund in Adyen.
Payment already fully refunded
You may receive a a notification of a failed refund with the reason “Payment already fully refunded, no balance available for new requested refund”
This indicates that a full refund has already been processed and no further action is required.
Already fully disputed, no balance available for new requested refund
You’ll see this message if you try to refund a payment in Spektrix that has already been refunded through the Chargeback process.
When a Chargeback is upheld, the Customer is refunded using your in-process funds (also known as available balance) in your Adyen account.
As Adyen doesn’t pass this information back to Spektrix, you’ll need to recognise this refund in Spektrix by performing a refund to a Custom Payment Type.
A Custom Payment Type is used to recognise a refund that has taken place outside of Spektrix and can help you reconcile these transactions as part of your financial Reporting.
Adyen User Account Permissions
A refund may fail if the user role in Adyen does not have the not have the correct refund permissions. To enable refunds, an admin user can assign the Merchant Manage Payments Role to Adyen User Accounts.
Once the Merchant Manage Payments Role has been added to a user's Adyen account, a refund can be processed by following the steps in How to process a Failed Refund in Adyen.
TIP: Alternatively an existing User with the Merchant Manage Payments Role can perform the refund.
Incorrect Payment status
If the reason for a failed Refund is Incorrect Payment Status, you’ll need to wait until Payment Status is updated to SentForSettle or Settled. This is usually updated within 24 hours.
Once the Payment status has changed to SentForSettle or Settled you can issue a refund by following the steps in How to process a Failed Refund in Adyen.
REMINDER: All refunds in Spektrix will show as successful even if it subsequently fails in Adyen. You won't need to refund the payment again in Spektrix. You can issue a refund in Adyen by following the steps in How to process a Failed Refund in Adyen.
Refund Failed due to Scheme Rejection
If a refund has failed due to a Scheme Rejection, this usually indicates that the Customer has closed their account. Some card schemes will reject the refund as they’re unable to refund to closed accounts.
If you see Card Scheme as the reason for a failed refund, you’ll need to issue a refund outside of Spektrix. For example, by BACS, Cash or Cheque.
REMINDER: All refunds in Spektrix will show as successful even if it subsequently fails in Adyen. You won't need to refund the payment again in Spektrix. You can issue a refund in Adyen by following the steps in How to process a Failed Refund in Adyen.
System Errors when performing a refund
You may experience an issue in Spektrix when processing the refund, such as an error or green screen. If you get an error when trying to process a refund, take a look at our Troubleshooting your Spektrix System article for steps on how to proceed.
If you’re unsure if the refund was successful, wait 24 hours. If a refund does fail within the previous 24 hours, our Support Team will get in touch with the details of any failed refunds. You’ll then need to issue a refund by following the steps in How to process a Failed Refund in Adyen.
REMINDER: All refunds in Spektrix will show as successful even if it subsequently fails in Adyen. You won't need to refund the payment again in Spektrix. You can issue a refund in Adyen by following the steps in How to process a Failed Refund in Adyen.
Account configuration error
There may be an Account configuration error preventing successful refunds. This will only happen if your Account Configuration has been changed. If you see this reason for a failed refund, contact our Support Team.
Once the Account Configuration error has been resolved, you can issue a refund in Adyen by following the steps in How to process a failed refund in Adyen.
Disputed Transaction
If the cardholder has disputed the transaction, the refund will be blocked to prevent the amount being debited twice from your Merchant Account. You’ll need to follow the Dispute Process. Read the following articles for more information:
When a Chargeback is upheld, the Customer is refunded using your in-process funds (also known as available balance) in your Adyen account.
As Adyen doesn’t pass this information back to Spektrix, you’ll need to recognise this refund in Spektrix by performing a Return and Refund using a Custom Payment Type.
A Custom Payment Type is used to recognise a refund that has taken place outside of Spektrix and can help you reconcile these transactions as part of your financial Reporting.
Interac Payment refunded outside of original transaction date
You can only refund Interac card payments on the same day as the original transaction. If a refund is processed on a different day, the refund will display as successful in Spektrix, but will fail in Adyen.
To refund an Interac Payment on the same day as the transaction date, you'll need to issue a refund outside of Spektrix (for example, cash, BACS, cheque). You’ll need to recognise this refund in Spektrix by performing a Return and Refund using a Custom Payment Type.
To refund an Interac Payment outside of the original transaction date, you'll need to issue a refund outside of Spektrix (for example, cash, BACS, cheque).
How to process a Failed Refund in Adyen
Our Support Team will contact you with details of the failed refund. You’ll use these details to locate the transaction in your Essentials Dashboard:
- Transaction Code: This is the Tx Code in Spektrix, known as Merchant Reference in Adyen
- PSP Reference: A unique 16 digit code assigned by Adyen to each transaction
- Amount: The refund amount
- Reason: The reason why the refund failed
TIP: When you search for the transaction in Adyen, you won’t see the failed refund. You’ll only see the payment the refund was made against.
The information provided by our Support Team will help you locate the original payment, where you can issue a refund.
Once you have the details of the failed refund, follow these steps:
-
Search for the Order in Spektrix and look at the Order History:
- Make a note of the TX Code assigned to the refund.
TIP: A Refund in Spektrix will be displayed as a minus (-) figure.
- Log into your Essentials Dashboard
- Click Payments from the left menu:
- You’ll see a Payments screen with a search box at the top:
Search for the Payment using either of the following:
- Transaction Code: This is the Tx Code in Spektrix, known as Merchant Reference in Adyen
- PSP Reference: A unique 16 digit code assigned by Adyen to each transaction
Once you’ve accessed the payment, click on the Refund Tab:
Enter the Merchant reference (this is the TX code assigned to the Refund in Spektrix). Click Refund payment:
TIP: We recommend you add the TX Code assigned to the refund in Spektrix against the Merchant reference above. This should help when reconciling your transactions.
This article should give you the information you need to understand and manage failed refunds in Spektrix Payments.
To learn more about Payments, visit the Manage Payments section of the Support Centre.