If your business accepts credit and debit cards, you may come across error code 85. Has the following scenario ever happened to you? The customer has their order, the cashier is ringing them up, then all of a sudden an error code appears and the transaction comes to a halt. These occurrences can feel more than a little awkward, but there is no need to panic. Learning what hold, error, and credit card decline codes mean and how to handle them can ease tension. Knowing what to do when you see error code 85 can help you maintain outstanding customer service during every checkout experience.
What is Error Code 85?
Error code 85 may mean that the issuer system is unavailable. It can stand for a temporary error in communication. Since the error may be temporary, the problem might fix itself.
Error code 85 may also mean that there is no particular reason to decline. If there’s no reason to decline, then why didn’t the payment go through? Well, there was still a problem securing payment. While this may sound confusing, this error code works as a sort of catch-all for unexplained errors. There is no particular problem to address, but an error has still occurred.
Overall, error code 85 is typically not as serious as the other payment processing errors may be. It may occur from time to time, but can typically be resolved on its own. However, this code does still mean that there has been a problem with the transaction and payment has not gone through.
What is an Error Code?
First, it’s important to understand what exactly an error code is. When a customer is checking out, they swipe, insert, scan, or even physically hand over their credit card. Then they wait to either sign or simply walk away with their goods and a receipt. On the merchant end, however, there’s a bit more to it. While the payment is processing, the merchant is waiting for approval, but sometimes that approval doesn’t come. Instead, a merchant may get a hold, error, or decline code letting them know the transaction was not successful. This can happen for a number of reasons.
How to Resolve Error Code 85
In the case of error code 85, try waiting a few minutes before attempting to run the credit card through the payment processing system once again. Since this error code includes unexplained errors, the errors are often temporary and can be resolved without outside assistance.
However, if the error continues the customer may need to contact their card-issuing bank for further assistance. The customer can choose to wait, or try a different credit card or alternative form of payment. Be patient and considerate with the customer as a credit card decline can be an embarrassing ordeal in the moment.
