ACH Direct Debit lets your clients pay directly from their bank account instead of using a credit card. The fees are lower (1.5% per transaction vs. 2.99% + $0.30 for cards), making it cost-effective for larger payments. But unlike card payments, ACH is not instant. That delay is where most of the confusion around failures comes from.
How ACH Payments Work
When a client submits an ACH payment, the money does not move right away. The payment enters a "processing" state while the banking system verifies and transfers the funds. This typically takes 4-5 business days. During that time, the payment shows as "processing" in Check Cherry.
Some first-time ACH customers may also need to verify their bank account through microdeposits before the payment can begin processing. This adds a day or two to the timeline.
Why ACH Payments Fail
Because ACH payments take days to settle, a failure can show up several days after the client submitted payment. This is normal and is how the banking system works. It is not a Check Cherry issue.
Common reasons for ACH failures:
- Insufficient funds - the most common reason. The client's account did not have enough money when the bank tried to pull the funds.
- Account closed - the bank account is no longer active.
- Incorrect account details - the routing or account number was entered wrong.
- Bank rejection - the client's bank declined the transaction for another reason (fraud hold, account restrictions, etc.).
What Happens Automatically
When an ACH payment fails, Check Cherry handles the bookkeeping for you:
If the failed payment was part of auto-pay (a scheduled payment plan), auto-pay is automatically disabled to prevent repeated failed charges. Both you and the client are notified through the automated "Scheduled Payment Failed" message.
What You Should Do
When you get a failure notification, here is the best way to handle it:
The Failed Payment Record
The original failed payment record is kept on the event for your records. It will not count toward the balance, but you can see it in the payment history. This is useful if you ever need to reference when the client attempted to pay or what went wrong.
ACH vs. Credit Cards
| ACH Direct Debit | Credit Card | |
|---|---|---|
| Processing time | 4-5 business days | Instant |
| Transaction fee | 1.5% | 2.99% + $0.30 |
| Convenience fee | Applies if enabled | Applies if enabled |
| Failure timing | Days after submission | Immediate |
| Auto-retry on failure | No | No |
Most businesses offer both options and let the client choose. ACH makes sense for larger payments where the fee savings add up. For smaller amounts or time-sensitive payments, cards are usually better since you know right away whether the payment went through.