Hey bunqers 🌈
Sometimes when you make a card payment, the payment gets reserved. What does that mean? Read all about it below 🙌
What’s a reserved payment and how does it work?
When you book or buy something, the merchant issues a "pre-authorization" on your account. This is a guarantee towards the merchant that there’s enough money in your account, and obliges us to reserve that amount for them.
The merchant is then supposed to inform us of the final amount. In 99.994% of cases, this happens within 30 days, and any extra money reserved is released immediately upon notification. Reserved payments are held for a set period, which varies by merchant payment type - some for 7 days, others for 14, with a maximum of 30 days. This period is determined by Mastercard and neither bunq nor the merchant have control over it.
What happens after the maximum hold period has passed?
After the maximum hold period, if the merchant hasn’t collected the amount, we’ll automatically return the reserved payment to your account, even if the merchant’s final amount is still pending. Please note, the merchant may contact you later to settle any outstanding charges or process the payment again.
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