🔍 Overview
Some customers notice that their active, funded card is not being charged for their monthly Search Atlas subscription — and in some cases this happens in consecutive billing cycles. This article explains the most common reasons this occurs and the steps you can take to resolve it.
⚠️ Why Your Card Charge May Be Failing
Even when your card appears active and has sufficient funds, a charge can fail for several reasons:
- Outdated default payment method: If you recently added a new card or updated your billing details, the system may still be attempting to charge a previous card that is no longer valid.
- Card issuer decline: Your bank or card issuer may be blocking the charge due to security rules, international transaction flags, or soft declines — even if the card is funded.
- Billing account sync issue: In rare cases, a technical mismatch between your subscription record and your payment method on file can prevent the charge from processing correctly.
- Add-on or top-up conflict: If your account has add-ons or top-up charges associated with it, a failed charge on one item can sometimes affect the processing of your base subscription.
🛠️ Steps to Resolve the Issue
- Verify your default payment method. Log in to Search Atlas, navigate to your billing settings, and confirm that the correct card is set as the default. If you have added a new card recently, make sure it is selected as the primary payment method and that any old cards have been removed.
- Check the card details. Ensure the card number, expiry date, CVV, and billing address saved in your account exactly match what your bank has on file. Even a small mismatch can cause a decline.
- Contact your bank. Reach out to your bank and ask whether any charges from Search Atlas have been blocked or flagged. Request that your bank whitelist future charges from us.
- Remove and re-add your card. If the details look correct but charges are still failing, try deleting the card from your account and adding it again. This can clear any sync issues between your payment method and our billing system.
- Try an alternative payment method. If the issue persists, consider adding a different card to see whether that card processes successfully.
📋 What Happens If the Charge Keeps Failing
If a subscription charge cannot be collected after multiple attempts, you may receive an email notification about the failed payment. Your account status and plan access may be affected if the balance remains unpaid across billing cycles. Resolving the payment method issue promptly will prevent any interruption to your service.
Note: If you receive a notification about a charge failure, please check the details carefully and follow the steps above to update your payment method as soon as possible.
If you need further assistance, open the chat widget in the bottom-right corner of the platform and type human teammate to be connected with a member of our team.