My credit card was declined due to AVS filter failure. What does this mean?

The AVS Filter Protects us Both

To protect our customers from credit card fraud, we have implemented the AVS (Address Verification Service) filter. The AVS filter requires that either the address number or postal code you enter matches the information on file with the credit card issuing bank. This way, thieves attempting to steal your credit card must have much more information than just a card number and expiration date to use your card. Occasionally the AVS filter is unable to match the billing address you provided to our store with the address on file with the credit card issuing bank, or the issuing bank does not support AVS filtering. If your credit card is declined due to AVS filter failure, please verify that the billing address you entered exactly matches the one associated with the credit card. If the credit card is still declined, you may want to call your credit card issuer and check to see if they support AVS filtering. If there is still a problem, contact our customer support team and we can help you complete your purchase.

Our online transactions take place in three parts. When you enter your credit card information, our store software contacts your bank to verify that your card number is valid and that sufficient funds are available for the transaction. If your credit card issuer approves the transaction, it automatically issues an approval code and puts a hold on the funds pending our store capturing them. If our store receives authorization then it submits the credit card information to the AVS filter. If the AVS filter approves the purchase your order appears in our order processing queue. We manually review your order for any issues and finding none, capture your funds. If the AVS filter declines your card, we cannot capture your funds without further verification of your identity.

If your bank has placed a temporary hold on your funds, it may appear as though the transaction went through even if your card was declined. However, when a card is declined, no funds are transferred to us. In this case, typically the hold will last between three to ten days and then automatically drop from your account.  If you receive a card declined message and continue to submit the transaction again for authorization, there will be multiple holds for the same amount. For this reason it's very important to make sure your billing address matches the the address associated with your credit card. We highly value our customers and believe these added security measures are needed to protect us both.