BB not refunding credit card fees when it's a donor error.

Hi @Sharon Yokelson - Since this has happening multiple times a year, I recommend that you take a look at the form in question and take steps to prevent this scenario from happening in the future. Through a quick internet search, I was able to locate your org's donation form; I recommend that you select a lower amount for the ‘default amount’ and this should prevent your current issue from occurring.

I'm not sure if that solves the problem too much @Austen Brown. It just makes the fee smaller.

That said, the default donation on this giving page is $25,000. I think this is where Austen is referring, assuming this is your organization. Regardless on what the amount is, this is a problem @Sharon Yokelson. I think it isn't bad customer service per se, but I think if this is the policy, they need to be more upfront for it. If it is a common issue, then there needs to be other mitigating factors to look into, which I think was Austen's point.

With all forms of payment, there is a cost for stopping the transaction. With checks, there's the cost of a “stop payment”, for example. The difference is that credit cards use a percentage, which makes the stakes so much higher with a larger donation. I'm with @Sharon Yokelson that paying $700 for a canceled credit card transaction is a bit over the top!

What makes this more challenging is that we, as organizations, have no control over reviewing credit card transactions before they process. With a check, at least, if we see something fishy, we can hold the check until we call the donor to confirm. Blackbaud could mitigate this situation by adding “review filters" to BBMS so that the org can set their own review criteria in place to flag large transactions, and approve them, before the transactions are processed.

I understand you are extremely frustrated with BB and the fee. I would be as well.

The fact that $25,000.00 is highlighted and that if a donor does not choose another option it is automatically used is considered a default. “Default” does not mean that another option can not be selected, only that it will be used if nothing else is selected.

I don't know with the change to the new BBMS if they still manage suspect transactions the same way. If they do - someone should have to approve a gift that is over $10,000 within BBMS before it is charged. May be worth asking about on your call if this is still happening. It might also be worth asking to see if someone on your staff did approve it. In addition to @Austen Brown's suggestion of changing your default giving amount - does anyone give to your org at the level legitimately by credit card? If not, perhaps changing the values in addition to changing the default may help. We have been working with our donors that give at that level by credit card to show them what the fees are (having the option to pay the fees has helped-thanks to SmartTHING) I know whenever we get hit with the legitimate fees in the $700-1000 range, I can't help but think of how many loyal donors giving what they can it takes to cover these costs. Many want to see their money work harder for your organization. Delicate conversations for sure. Best of luck @Sharon Yokelson.

Regarding @Elizabeth Johnson's point about approving charges over $10K. We had to approve the first such charge. Recently had a second charge at that level. It just registered with BBMS as ‘suspect transaction’ but was processed without our input/approval.

As I read their info, charges will be marked as suspect but only those over $50K need approval. Might be worth asking if they can set specific limit requiring approval per account.

@Sharon Yokelson - absolutely - I'll DM you.