How do Auto-charge Retries work?

Last updated: November 12, 2025

Overview

Tabs automatically retries failed payments for customers who have Auto-charge enabled. This helps recover revenue from temporary issues such as insufficient funds or expired cards, reducing the need for manual follow-up.

Auto-charge Retries use the customer’s saved payment method if it is a credit card and continue until the payment succeeds or all retry attempts are completed.

Retry Eligible Credit Card Failures Automatically

Tabs automatically retries failed payments when:

  • The customer’s preferred payment method is a credit card.

  • The customer has Auto-charge enabled by contract.

The default configuration includes four retry attempts, each spaced seven days apart.
This results in five total attempts: the initial charge plus four retries.

Example schedule

  • 1st attempt: January 1

  • 2nd attempt (1st retry): January 8

  • 3rd attempt (2nd retry): January 15

  • 4th attempt (3rd retry): January 22

  • 5th attempt (4th retry): January 29

Skip Permanent Failures

Tabs will not retry payments for permanent failures that indicate the card cannot be used.

Examples include:

  • Expired card

  • Stolen or lost card

  • Incorrect number or CVC

  • Authorization revoked

  • Fraud or risk-related declines

For these cases, you should contact the customer to update their payment details.

How Auto-charge Retries Work

  1. Initial attempt

    • When an invoice is sent for a customer with Auto-charge enabled, Tabs charges the saved credit card or ACH account.

  2. If the payment fails

    • Tabs places the payment in a retry queue.

    • The system automatically reattempts the charge according to the retry schedule.

  3. If a retry succeeds

    • The invoice is marked Paid automatically.

    • The payment status updates in Tabs.

    • The recovered funds are logged internally.

  4. If all retries fail

    • The invoice remains Unpaid.

    • The reason for failure is logged for review.

    • You can resend the invoice or manually retry the charge after updating the customer’s payment method.

Track All Payment Attempts

To review failed payments:

  1. Open the Invoices table and navigate to the invoice in question.

  2. Locate the failed payment attempt.

  3. View details and failure reason.

Example

A customer’s ACH debit fails due to insufficient funds.

  • Tabs automatically retries the charge seven days later.

  • The customer’s bank account now has sufficient funds, so the retry succeeds.

  • The invoice is marked Paid, and the success is logged internally.

Key Notes

  • Auto-charge Retries work for Credit Card and ACH Debit payments.

  • No manual action is required to trigger retries.

  • Retried payments use the same payment method as the original attempt.

  • Merchants are not notified when retries occur, but will see invoices updated to Paid once a retry succeeds.

  • Permanent payment failures must be resolved manually by updating the payment method.

  • Tabs’ internal dashboards track success rates and recaptured funds to improve payment reliability.

FAQs

Q: Does Tabs notify customers when their card fails?
A: Not yet. We recommend reaching out manually for reasons like expired cards or incorrect CVC.

Q: Can I manually retry a failed charge?
A: Yes. You can manually retry by selecting a saved payment method in the customer’s settings.

Q: Does this apply to non-credit card payments?
A: Yes. Auto-charge retries are available for both credit card and ACH debit payments that have Auto-charge enabled.