Why was my card declined?

This article explains the common reasons a purchase on your business’s Vav card fails and how to fix each one.

Before you start

• Open Cards and look at the card’s Card taps list. A declined purchase appears with a “failed” status next to the attempted amount. Vav does not show a reason code for each decline, so check the causes below in order.

Steps

1. Check the card isn’t frozen. A Frozen badge means every purchase is declined. Tap Unfreeze and try again.
2. Check the card balance. The purchase amount must fit within the money loaded on the card. If the balance is too low, tap Top up and load more.
3. Check the daily limit. Look at the Spent today bar. If today’s spending plus the new purchase goes over your daily limit, the purchase is declined. Raise the limit under Limits, or wait for the daily reset (midnight GMT+8). See Set a daily spending limit.
4. Check the card isn’t closed. A closed card declines everything, permanently. Issue a new card if you need one.
5. Check the details you typed. For online payments, the card number, expiry, CVV and billing address must match exactly. Reveal them with Show details and copy them carefully — the billing address is the one from the account’s identity verification, not necessarily the delivery address.

What happens next

• A declined purchase never takes money from the card. The failed attempt stays in the list for your records.
• Once you fix the cause, simply try the payment again — there is nothing to reset on Vav’s side.

Fees and limits for this action

• Declines are free. You are never charged for a failed purchase.

Troubleshooting

• Everything looks right, but the merchant still declines. Some merchants or countries may not accept the card, and the decline can happen on the merchant’s side. Try another merchant to confirm the card works.
• A purchase failed but the merchant says they charged me. Check the card’s Card taps list — a “failed” entry means no money moved. If money left the card without a matching purchase, contact support.

FAQs

Can I see why a specific purchase was declined? Not in the app today. The list shows the attempt and “failed”, without a reason. Walk through the causes above — they cover almost all declines.

Does a declined purchase lock my card? No. There is no decline counter on Vav’s side. Fix the cause and try again.

Does a frozen card decline subscriptions too? Yes, every charge is declined while the card is frozen.

The decline keeps happening at one merchant only. If other payments work, the problem is likely between the merchant and the card network — for example a billing address check. Make sure you use the billing address shown in your card details.

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