"Bill Order" Question

[Gary Bisonett]

Under "Orders" there is a button called "Bill Orders". The help
description says:

This button will only appear if you are using real-time credit card
processing. In a nutshell, orders are authorized in real time. If the order
cannot be authorized, the customer will be notified of that and invited to
re-enter the credit card information. Therefore, if the order appears in the
orders section of ShopSite, you know that the payment has already been
authorized. However, the card will not be billed until you select the order
from the list on the Orders screen and click Bill Orders. After you have
billed the order, delete the order by clicking Delete Orders (see below). If
you do not wish to complete the transaction, you may delete the order
without billing it.

We are using Authorize.net for payment processing and it is my understanding
that once a transaction is approved, everything is automatic. So my
question is, when, if ever, would I want to use "Bill Orders"?

Thanks

Gary

[loren_d_c]

If your Authorize.net settings in ShopSite (Commerce Setup -> Payment ->
Configure Processor) are for the Order Transaction Type to be AUTH_ONLY
(which is the default), then when the order is placed the amount of the
order is being authorized and reserved ONLY. Then you would need to use
the Bill Orders button in the Orders menu to settle the transactions
that had been previously authorized. You can also probably do the
settlement transaction through Authorize.net's merchant terminal.

If you Order Transaction Type for Authorize.net in ShopSite is
AUTH_CAPTURE, then the authorization and settlement transactions are
done at the same time and there is no need to Bill Orders.

Most merchants I have talked to prefer the AUTH_ONLY order transaction
type because it allows them to review the orders before doing the final
capture/settlement of the funds.

-Loren


Gary Bisonett wrote:

Under "Orders" there is a button called "Bill Orders". The help
description says:

This button will only appear if you are using real-time credit card
processing. In a nutshell, orders are authorized in real time. If the order
cannot be authorized, the customer will be notified of that and invited to
re-enter the credit card information. Therefore, if the order appears in the
orders section of ShopSite, you know that the payment has already been
authorized. However, the card will not be billed until you select the order
from the list on the Orders screen and click Bill Orders. After you have
billed the order, delete the order by clicking Delete Orders (see below). If
you do not wish to complete the transaction, you may delete the order
without billing it.

We are using Authorize.net for payment processing and it is my understanding
that once a transaction is approved, everything is automatic. So my
question is, when, if ever, would I want to use "Bill Orders"?

Thanks

Gary