Failed Transactions But Credit Card Got Charged

[seven21]

I tried to purchase Universal License, but payment failed. I thought it could be network error or I made a mistake when putting my card details. So I tried again and it failed again. I then checked my account and my credit card got charged for both.

How is a failed transaction still charging my card? 

[js_]

Same thing just happened to me. My bank is showing multiple charges as pending, but those transactions failed on Serif's side. Fingers crossed the pending charges don't go through. 

[Mark.Sanchez]

For all of us experiencing similar payment and licensing problems. It seems that Serif is NOT LISTENING or taking this issue for granted. I urge you to write a bad review on their apple App store and request apple to pull out their apps until Serif gets their act together! TERRIBLE TERRIBLE CUSTOMER SERVICE!

[seven21]

9 hours ago, js_ said:

Same thing just happened to me. My bank is showing multiple charges as pending, but those transactions failed on Serif's side. Fingers crossed the pending charges don't go through. 

I contacted my bank also, they told me the merchant has already acknowledged the transaction but pending(?), so they cannot reversed it from their side (I can't remember now what the exact terms). And that I need to contact the merchant to resolve it. I think that's another separate issue with the bank. The transaction is pending on merchant side, but to them it's already finalized.

[SSS]

same here, just pending and cannot revere the charges! Luckily, I only purchase 1 time, i hear people got charged a few times.

email sent and has been 5 days and no reply from Serif, disappointed. 

[mr.krister]

Same here, 3 charges are pending for 400 euro total. I tried purchasing on Nov 11th, and got no visible confirmation for the transaction. I've been waiting for an email response since then

Edited November 16, 2022 by mr.krister

[wilson66]

This is ridiculous. I feel very little motivation to retry my failed purchase, get charged twice for the same thing, and then try to get back my money. I've got better things to do. 

[Raw]

Same here.

If you are annoying for Affinity because you have spent your money on the V2 and you have not been given the license and the bank has withheld the money. They close the post for you.

You pay. They keep your money. You dont have anything. You are polite. They close thread.

Pay. Lose and shut up. 

ABC ya.

[Mark.Sanchez]

Apparently, Serif is shutting people up so people wouldn’t complain about them taking your money without giving you the product you purchased. It’s the makings of a SCAM! I’ve contacted Engadget and 9to5Mac to write a story about it. I think people should make noise about this on social media so Serif would listen. It’s not right taking people’s money and not deliver the product they paid for! It’s called STEALING! It’s a crime.

[Patrick Connor]

Talking 100,000 orders in a short time has led to a normal number of queries looking like a significant problem. Consequently we have a long backlog of customers to contact, with only a small team.

Because bank details are involved all communication about payment processing will be done by email. (Normally AffinityOrders@serif.com)

I am sure that we will be able to satisfactorily address every query in this thread and would appreciate it if you can come back to this thread once your payment query has been addressed to your satisfaction and say so.

[Mark.Sanchez]

There you are again, DOWNPLAYING the issue. The way moderators like YOU address frustrated customers like us is so unsympathetic and unprofessional. YOU are simply UNFIT to represent Serif in a crisis like this! Just now companies are dying like flies and employees have been gotten rid of in the thousands. Serif should hire more competent customer facing representatives to address a crisis like this. There is NO PROBLEM that is too little. This could go out of hand in a second and your company could explode (metaphorically) and you along with it. So take it seriously! 

[SSS]

i think most of our charges is just pre-authorisation (pending) payment, does anyone know when it will drop back to our account?  

[seven21]

I browsed through the other thread link here, and one moderator said there are no issues with payment processing. So they have no visibility on what is going on from their payment contractor. Braintree is it? And braintree also don't have visibility on Affinity's system, they only process payments. Of course, I also don't know how they communicate with each other.

So what happens when the pending transactions, 2 in my case, got processed at Braintree's end? Do they know that they should not process duplicate transactions for one product? What happens when I purchase through Paypal and then Braintree also process my first 2 transactions?

Until I know what happens to my first 2 transactions I will not try another payment method. Because even if they may be pending, those are credits withheld from my account and cannot use.

[PaulEC]

9 hours ago, SSS said:

i think most of our charges is just pre-authorisation (pending) payment, does anyone know when it will drop back to our account?  

It is. The funds are just being treated as "pending" by your bank. The time it takes to release the funds depends on your bank!
 

[Patrick Connor]

11 hours ago, Mark.Sanchez said:

There you are again, DOWNPLAYING the issue. The way moderators like YOU address frustrated customers like us is so unsympathetic and unprofessional. YOU are simply UNFIT to represent Serif in a crisis like this! Just now companies are dying like flies and employees have been gotten rid of in the thousands. Serif should hire more competent customer facing representatives to address a crisis like this. There is NO PROBLEM that is too little. This could go out of hand in a second and your company could explode (metaphorically) and you along with it. So take it seriously! 

I am sorry that is how you see my reply, it is not how it is intended to be read. I have to post for everyone to read.

I am not saying you do not have a problem, and your problem will be addressed (in turn). 

[Robert Kalocai]

This whole problem is on Affinity's side.  I've been making a living creating ecommerce solutions for a long time, and in our company he has a lot of experience with verifying payments and in-app purchases.  This whole issue is a poor implementation of the payment gateway and license server on Affinity's side.  They don't know how to solve a problem and they don't know how to admit a mistake.  Unfortunately, this is the reality.

[Mark.Sanchez]

Guys, i’ve got an update! I just got a response from customer service last night. And they sent me a screenshot of the failed transaction. Refer to the attached screenshot. It says “Gateway Rejected: CVV”. That means there as an error with the CVV?! In other card processing systems, an error in the CVV information should have automatically rejected the charge! But my card got charged! That means ther was some sort of bypass going on!!! Something’s NOT RIGHT! It’s either Serif’s system has been HACKED, or this this a SCAM! I think it doesn’t take a genius to figure this out!

I have a funny feeling we are NEVER GETTING OUR MONEY BACK.

Edited November 18, 2022 by Mark.Sanchez

[ANX]

I have the same problem. I have bought 3 universal licenses and in my bank the operation is authorized. I don't know anything about serif yet. What I hope is to have my 3 licenses that I have already paid for.

[ANX]

I have been an Affinity user since May 2020 and it occurred to me to look when I bought it, and surprise, I did not remember that something similar happened to me. I made two purchase attempts and both were charged, in that case I did obtain the licenses on the second attempt, but with two charges.

[Mark.Sanchez]

I've been so disappointed on how they've handled this situation, I've went ahead and filed a report at the NCSC (National Cyber Security Centre). I reported them as a "Suspiscous Website". The government has to go in and investigate this.

[boyuzhao]

 

•   I haven't answered my emails in eight days

I'm a Chinese user.I use mastercard for payment.
•    It has been 3 days and there is no display of my purchase record and email.I spent a lot of money but didn't get the software. I didn't reply to your email, which totally wasted my time. It was a terrible experience. I have sent several emails but have not received any reply. Please reply as soon as possible when you receive the email. The bank card number has been sent to your email. I really need it urgently. Get back to me as soon as possible. I was so angry.It's really disappointing.The efficiency is too slow!!!!!

 

Please reply to my email as soon as you see the post！！！

 

[ANX]

I have been an Affinity user since May 2020 and it occurred to me to look when I bought it, and surprise, I did not remember that something similar happened to me. I made two purchase attempts and both were charged, in that case I did obtain the licenses on the second attempt, but with two charges.

[ANX]

Hello,
The days go by and we continue exactly the same, I still do not have the Affinity licenses and the money is not refunded to the card either. I hope and understand that you are looking for a solution to this rather generalized problem, but I am not getting a response to the emails sent either.

All the best.

[seven21]

Hi all,

I have received this response to my ticket after 10 days, and when I checked my credit card account, those transactions have disappeared.

What do you guys think? It looks like it's really an issue with their payment gateway. I don't like using PayPal, I only use it for merchants that only provide PayPal as payment method, but I'll probably use it for Affinity next time. Until when is the sale again? I'll think about it if I still want to purchase it.

[913]

Did you get your payment back

1 hour ago, seven21 said:

Hi all,

I have received this response to my ticket after 10 days, and when I checked my credit card account, those transactions have disappeared.

What do you guys think? It looks like it's really an issue with their payment gateway. I don't like using PayPal, I only use it for merchants that only provide PayPal as payment method, but I'll probably use it for Affinity next time. Until when is the sale again? I'll think about it if I still want to purchase it.