Failed payment handling and retry

Failed payment handling

If your payment method fails when Stripe attempts to charge for your subscription, Certorix follows a retry and notification process.

What triggers a failed payment

• Expired credit card
• Insufficient funds
• Card declined by bank
• Payment method removed
• Fraud detection block

Retry schedule

Stripe automatically retries failed payments on this schedule:

1. First retry: 1 day after failure
2. Second retry: 3 days after failure
3. Third retry: 7 days after failure
4. Fourth retry: 14 days after failure
5. Fifth retry: 21 days after failure

After 5 failed retries (approximately 21 days), the subscription is marked as past due.

Email notifications

Certorix sends email notifications to all admins:

• Immediately after the first failure
• After each failed retry
• When the subscription becomes past due

What happens when subscription is past due

• Your plan is not automatically downgraded — you stay on Pro or Business.
• However, widget access is suspended (customers see an error message).
• You cannot publish new trees or certify new facts.
• AI generations are blocked.
• Existing data is not deleted.

Resolving a past due subscription

1. Go to Billing → Manage subscription (Stripe customer portal).
2. Update your payment method with a valid card.
3. Stripe automatically retries the charge with the new payment method.
4. Once payment succeeds, access is restored immediately.

Subscription cancellation after prolonged past due

If a subscription remains past due for 60 days, it is automatically cancelled and the account reverts to Free. Data is retained for 30 days after cancellation (see data retention policy).