Choose the symptom you can observe
Open the matching case. Check the existing state before changing a record or repeating an action.
The payment provider declines or cannot process the payment.
Check first
- Read the provider-facing failure message without copying full payment credentials into notes.
- Confirm the invoice is still open and the amount has not changed since checkout started.
- Check whether the payer's account or payment method is permitted for the invoice.
Next action
Give the payer the provider's safe next step, such as correcting the payment method or contacting the provider, and keep the invoice open until a completed status arrives. Do not record a payment as successful from a failed attempt.
Confirm the result
The invoice shows either a confirmed payment state or an unchanged open balance with the failed attempt and next owner recorded.
Checkout returns, but the invoice remains in its prior state.
Check first
- Compare the checkout attempt time and reference with the invoice's latest status timestamp.
- Check whether the provider result is pending, failed, reversed, or completed.
- Refresh the invoice detail and history rather than relying on the browser return alone.
Next action
Treat the payment as pending until the provider and invoice records agree. Route a missing status update with the invoice and attempt references, and avoid starting a second payment while the first result is unresolved.
Confirm the result
The invoice status and payment history reflect the same provider outcome, or the unresolved pending state is clearly owned.
The payer is unsure whether trying again would charge twice.
Check first
- Look for an existing attempt or payment record for the same invoice and amount.
- Check the provider state and timestamp of the earlier attempt.
- Confirm whether the invoice balance has changed or remains open.
Next action
Pause a second attempt until the first transaction is final or the payment owner confirms it failed. Use the existing reference to reconcile the result instead of creating a duplicate record.
Confirm the result
The invoice history shows one resolved payment outcome or one explicitly failed attempt before another payment is started.
The invoice closes or changes while the payer is in checkout.
Check first
- Compare the invoice status and balance before checkout with the current detail.
- Check for another payment, adjustment, or cancellation event during the attempt.
- Confirm the provider checkout reference belongs to the current invoice.
Next action
Stop the handoff and reconcile the current invoice state with the payment owner. Do not ask the payer to complete a stale checkout against an invoice whose balance or status changed.
Confirm the result
The final invoice and payment records explain whether the attempt was cancelled, applied, reversed, or still pending.
Prepare a useful escalation
- Include the invoice identifier, open balance, attempt timestamp, provider reference, and safe failure status.
- Never include full card, bank, or credential details in the incident note.
- Ask the payment owner to reconcile a pending or conflicting provider result before another attempt begins.
Reference the relevant record instead of copying credentials or unrelated personal information into the handoff.