Use this when... a parent needs to update how they pay, a saved payment method has expired, or an invoice payment has failed and needs follow-up.

Before you start... check the invoice, family balance, payment provider connection, and parent record. Do not ask parents to send card or bank details by email, message, or notes. Use the secure payment method update flow provided by TuitionFlow and your payment provider.

Start in Billing to understand whether the issue is a failed payment, missing payment method, or unpaid invoice.

A failed payment is not the same as a cancelled invoice. The invoice usually remains payable, but the attempted collection did not complete. The best admin response is to preserve the invoice, understand the reason, and help the parent retry safely.

Common reasons include expired cards, insufficient funds, authentication not completed, bank declines, incorrect billing details, or a payment provider setup issue. Keep follow-up factual and avoid blame.

Open Billing or Invoices and find the invoice or family balance. Look for the payment status and any provider reason attached to the failure. If there are multiple attempts, check the most recent one first.

Use the invoice record to confirm exactly which charge failed.

Expected outcome: you know which invoice is unpaid, how much is still due, and whether the failure belongs to the parent, provider, or organisation setup.

If the payment method is expired or invalid, send the parent the approved payment or update link. Do not collect card details manually. If the parent is unsure what happened, explain that the previous attempt did not complete and that they can retry using the secure link.

If the parent updates the method, retry through the normal payment workflow. If they will pay by bank transfer or another external route, only record the external payment after the money is received. If they dispute the invoice, pause collection and review lessons, attendance, cancellations, and credits first.

Do not create a duplicate invoice just because a payment failed. Keep the original invoice open unless your finance process requires a replacement. Add concise notes about follow-up so another admin can understand the status.

The parent says they paid: check provider status, invoice activity, and family balance before replying. A bank statement pending entry may not mean the charge succeeded.

The retry button is unavailable: check invoice state, payment provider setup, parent payment method status, and your user permissions.

The payment keeps failing: ask the parent to use a different payment method or contact their bank. If many parents are affected, check your payment provider connection.

Review failed payments daily during busy billing periods. Prioritise older unpaid invoices, families with multiple failures, and balances that may affect upcoming lessons. Keep the tone helpful, but make sure the account status remains visible to the finance team.

Keep failed-payment notes short and action-focused. Record the date you contacted the parent, the route used, and the next expected action. Avoid storing full provider decline messages if they include sensitive details. If another admin opens the family record tomorrow, they should be able to see whether the parent needs a reminder, a payment method update, or finance escalation.

Escalate failed payments when they repeat, when the parent disputes the charge, when lessons are continuing while debt grows, or when several parents fail at the same time. Repeated failures for one family may need a payment plan. Failures across many families may indicate a provider or integration issue.

Use neutral wording. Say that the payment did not complete, the invoice remains open, and the parent can retry securely. Avoid saying that a card was declined unless the provider reason is clear and appropriate to share.

After the payment succeeds, confirm the invoice state, family balance, and any related payout or tutor pay status. If the payment remains unresolved, continue through the aged debt workflow.