Unknown Payment Status
When a card payment is settled at the terminal, the Sales Point expects a response from the payment provider confirming whether the payment succeeded. If that confirmation does not arrive, the payment receives the status "Unknown". In this case it is not certain whether the amount was actually charged to the customer. This page explains how to recognize an "Unknown" payment and how to check it with your provider and cancel it if necessary.
What "Unknown" means
The "Unknown" payment status is neither Accepted nor Declined. It occurs when the Sales Point does not receive a clear response from the payment provider after settling at the terminal — for example due to an interrupted connection, an abort during processing, or a timeout. The customer's card may have been charged, but not necessarily. This is exactly why a manual check with the provider is required.
How to recognize it
An "Unknown" payment shows up in several places.
No receipt and no dialog
If, after settling at the terminal, neither a receipt is printed nor the digital-receipt dialog is offered, this is a strong indication of an "Unknown" status.
Receipt footer
If a receipt is printed, the footer indicates the state of the payment (the Sales Point prints these lines in German):
|
Receipt footer |
Payment status |
|---|---|
|
Betrag dankend erhalten! (Amount received, thank you!) |
Accepted – payment confirmed |
|
Warte auf Zahlungsbestätigung! (Waiting for payment confirmation!) |
Unknown – not yet confirmed |
|
Die Zahlung wurde abgelehnt! (The payment was declined!) |
Declined – payment did not go through |
Reports and daily closing
In the invoice overview the payment appears with the status "Unknown". In addition, "Unknown" payments are explicitly shown at the daily closing (Sales Point Closing) and in all reports — as a separate line with the payment method name and the postfix "(Unknown)", for example Card (Unknown). This keeps open cases visible during reconciliation so they are not overlooked.
What you should do
Do not re-charge an "Unknown" payment without checking first. If the card was already charged, a second attempt results in a double charge to the customer.
For an "Unknown" payment, proceed as follows:
-
Check with the provider. Open your payment provider's merchant portal or app and check whether the transaction is recorded there as completed.
-
Not charged. If no charge was made, charge the amount again through the Sales Point.
-
Charged, but without a receipt. If the amount was charged but no valid receipt was created in the Sales Point, cancel the transaction with the provider and then charge cleanly again, so that receipt and payment match.
-
Unclear. If the state cannot be clearly determined, contact your payment provider's support before charging again.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
Is the customer charged twice with "Unknown"?
Not automatically. "Unknown" only means that the Sales Point did not receive a confirmation. A double charge only arises if you re-charge without checking, even though the first payment was already charged. Always check with the provider first.
Do I need to cancel anything in the Sales Point?
Cancelling the card charge happens with the payment provider, not in the Sales Point. If you want to cancel an invoice already created in the Sales Point, this is done directly in the bessa POS app.