📝 Overview

This guide helps you troubleshoot when your customers report errors during checkout or sign-up. It covers what information to collect, how to determine whether a charge was processed, and what steps to take based on the outcome.

Checkout errors can occur for a variety of reasons, and the right action depends on whether the customer was charged and whether a purchase was created in your dashboard.

🔍 What Your Customers May See

When a checkout error occurs, customers may experience one of several things. Understanding what they saw helps you determine what happened and what to do next.

Click the arrow to view common error experiences

An error message during checkout — The customer may see a message such as "something went wrong" or "payment failed" while attempting to complete a purchase.

An error screen with a reference code — In some cases, the customer may be redirected to an error screen that displays a reference code and suggests contacting support.

The checkout process does not complete — The customer clicks the purchase button but nothing happens, or the page does not confirm the purchase.

The customer is charged but does not receive their purchase — The customer sees a charge on their bank statement, but their membership, class registration, or product does not appear in their account.

The error resolves on a later attempt — The checkout fails initially, but when the customer tries again later (minutes, hours, or the next day), it succeeds without any changes.

📋 Step 1: Collect Information from the Customer

Before investigating, it is helpful to gather the following information from the customer. This will make it easier to identify what happened and resolve the issue quickly.

Click the arrow to view the information to collect

Ask the customer for as much of the following as possible:

What they were trying to purchase — membership, class, pass, day pass, course, etc.
When the error occurred — the approximate date and time
What they saw — the error message, error screen, or reference code (a screenshot is helpful if available)
Whether they were charged — ask them to check their bank statement or banking app for a pending or completed charge
Whether they tried again — and if so, whether the second attempt succeeded

💡 If the customer provides a reference code from an error screen, include this when contacting our support team — it can help the team identify the issue more quickly.

💳 Step 2: Check Whether a Charge Was Processed

Once you have the customer's details, the next step is to check your payment processor's dashboard to determine whether a charge was created.

Click the arrow to view the steps for checking your payment processor

If the customer paid via Stripe

Check whether a charge exists and note its status (Succeeded, Failed, or Incomplete).

💡 For a detailed walkthrough, see the guide on checking a payment status in Stripe here.

If the customer paid via GoCardless

Log in to your GoCardless dashboard ➜ Search for the customer ➜ Check whether a payment was created and its current status.

✅ Step 3: Take Action Based on What You Find

Based on whether a charge was processed and whether the purchase is showing in your dashboard, follow the appropriate path below.

Click the arrow to view the recommended actions

A charge exists and the purchase is showing in the customer's profile

Everything is in order. The customer may have seen an error during checkout, but the payment and purchase were completed successfully. Direct the customer to check their account — the purchase should be visible in their profile.

A charge exists but the purchase is NOT showing in the customer's profile

This indicates a sync issue between your payment processor and your dashboard. Contact our support team through the chat widget on your dashboard and provide the charge ID (or payment ID for GoCardless) along with the customer's name and what they purchased. The team can reconcile the payment and link it to the correct purchase.

For a step-by-step guide on handling this scenario, see the guide here.

No charge exists in the payment processor

If no charge was created, the payment was not processed. The customer was not charged. They may see a pending hold on their bank statement, which is common when a payment is attempted but not completed — these holds are typically released by the customer's bank within a few business days.

The customer can try going through checkout again. If the error was caused by a card decline, expired card, or insufficient funds, they may need to try with a different payment method or contact their bank.

The error resolved when the customer tried again later

Transient checkout errors can occur due to temporary bank-side restrictions, brief network issues, or processing delays. If a payment fails at checkout but succeeds when the customer tries again shortly after, no further action is usually needed.

If this is happening to multiple customers at the same time, please contact our support team so we can investigate.

⏳ Understanding "Checkout Pending" on Your Class List

During checkout, you may notice a customer appearing on a class list or attendance view with a "Checkout Pending" status. This section explains what this means and when you might see it.

Click the arrow to learn more about checkout pending

When a customer begins the checkout process, the system temporarily holds their spot in the class or event. On the business side, you may see the customer appear with a Checkout Pending status.

This is expected behaviour:

The booking is not confirmed until the payment completes successfully.
If the payment fails or the customer does not complete checkout, the spot is released.
No confirmation emails are sent unless the payment succeeds.

"Checkout Pending" is not specific to any particular product type — it can appear during checkout for memberships, classes, passes, or other purchases.

⚠️ If you see a customer stuck in "Checkout Pending" for an extended period, this is not expected. Please contact our support team with the customer's details and the class or event involved so the team can investigate.

⚠️ When Multiple Customers Are Affected

If several customers report checkout errors at the same time, or if the errors are happening across different purchase types, this may indicate a broader issue rather than an individual card or bank problem.

Click the arrow to learn what to do when multiple customers are affected

In this situation, please contact our support team through the chat widget on your dashboard and include the following information:

The approximate time the errors began
What customers were trying to purchase (membership, class, pass, etc.)
How many customers have been affected
Any error messages or reference codes that were shared with you
Whether any customers were charged but did not receive their purchase

Providing this information upfront helps the team investigate more efficiently.

💡 If you have customers who were charged but did not receive their purchase, prioritise gathering their Stripe charge IDs or GoCardless Payment IDs so the support team can reconcile those payments as quickly as possible.

❓ Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Find answers to common questions or additional details that may not be covered in the main instructions.