Troubleshooting card payment issues
Whilst students are expected to pay in advance of any impending fee due dates, we appreciate that complications can arise when attempting to make your card payment. In March 2022, a new global multi factor authentication protocol (3D Secure V2) for online card payments was introduced, which in October 2022 formally replaced the original 3S Secure V1. This document explains what 3D Secure V2 is intended to help you to work through any challenges you may encounter when trying to pay by card.
What is 3D Secure V2?
This is a multi-factor authentication protocol used to digitally confirm the identity of the payer during checkout. In order for your card issuer to approve your online payment, they may ask the cardholder to provide some data. This may be in the form of the card issuer asking you to provide a pass code they have sent you to authenticate the transaction or biometrics such as face recognition or a fingerprint. For more information visit Visa or MasterCard.
I have attempted to pay online but have received the message 'Authorisation has failed' or 3D "Secure challenge authenticated failed". Why is this?
There are several reasons why this may have happened:
IF you may have made a mistake entering the card number THEN try payment again and check all information is accurate.
IF there is an issue with the card itself THEN you should contact your bank.
IF your billing address contains an invalid character, such as a /, -, () or : THEN you should try payment again and remove all characters from your billing address.
IF the postcode you have entered is different from the postcode held by the card issuing company THEN check the information held by your bank is up to date and they have all your contact details which could impact authentication, then attempt payment again and check all information is accurate.
IF your credit limit may have been exceeded, an overall credit limit by some card issuers may impose daily limits on the amount and the number of payments you can attempt THEN you should contact your bank and ask for clarification on any limits which may exist for online payments. You must ensure your bank / card issuer is aware in advance of your intention to make an online card payment.
Not all cards are eligible for online payments, payments using Visa, Mastercard are allowed THEN you should use another card.
IF an error message of unable to authenticate appears THEN you should contact your card issuer or bank to confirm that the cardholder is set-up correctly to allow for an SCA (Strong Customer Authentication) transaction.
Please note - If the card has been declined the student may try again, but please be aware that most card issuers allow only three consecutive attempts before the card is blocked for the rest of the day. In order to maintain confidentiality, the card issuing company will not tell the University why the transaction has been declined and the student will need to contact them directly to find out why it was declined.
Additional troubleshooting methods to try:
If your payment has failed and it does not appear to be related to authentication, you may want to try other methods which may help.
- Try using a different web browser
- Try an incognito window in a browser
- Try using a different device
- Try paying in smaller instalments
- Try different combinations of the above