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How-to

Runbook: Recover Failed Subscription Billing

Account: VITAG (Vitagen Labs)
Navigation: Operations → Auto Orders → [find subscription]

When to Use This Runbook​

Use when a subscription rebill fails — the customer's payment card was declined and their next shipment is at risk. This is the highest-revenue-impact support scenario for a subscription supplement brand. Act fast: the longer a subscription sits in failed-billing status, the more likely the customer cancels.

Who can do this: Customer service with Auto Orders — Edit permission. Tasks for failed billing are auto-assigned via Order Task Generation rules.

Understanding the Retry Lifecycle​

UltraCart automatically retries failed rebills on a schedule (typically 3–7 retry attempts over several days, depending on account configuration). You do not need to manually retry on day 1 — the system handles initial retries.

Intervene when:

  • A task fires ("CC Update: Account Closed / Call Customer") — the card is permanently dead; no retry will work

  • A task fires ("Auto Order Cancelled Due to Repetitive Declines") — the subscription has already been cancelled by the system

Step 1: Find the Failed Subscription​

Option A — From a Task:

  1. Open Operations → Tasks

  2. Find the task for the failed billing event

  3. Click through to the linked Auto Order record

Option B — From the Failed Billing Report:

  1. Operations → Reporting → Available Reports → Auto Order → Failed Billing

  2. Find the customer and click through to their subscription

Option C — Direct search:

  1. Operations → Auto Orders

  2. Filter by Status: Active with billing issues (or search by customer email)

Step 2: Assess the Situation​

Decline ReasonLikely CauseBest Action
Insufficient fundsTemporary cash flow issueWait for system retry; email customer
Card expiredCard needs to be updatedEmail with update link immediately
Account closedCard is cancelled; permanentCall or email immediately — no retry will work
Do not honorBank blocking for various reasonsEmail customer to call their bank OR update card
Lost/stolenNew card issuedEmail customer to update card

Step 3: Take Action Based on Situation​

Situation A: Card Is Still Active (Insufficient Funds / Do Not Honor)​

The system will keep retrying. Your job is to alert the customer so they can fix it before retries are exhausted.

Send the payment update email:

Subject: Action needed — update your payment method for Vitagen Labs

Hi [Name],

We attempted to process your next Vitagen Labs shipment but your payment method on file was declined. This can happen for a variety of reasons — your bank may have flagged the charge, or your card may have been recently updated.

To keep your subscription active and your next shipment on track, please update your payment method here:
[Insert subscription management link or customer portal link]

If you have any questions or need help, reply to this email or call us at [phone].

Thank you,
Vitagen Labs Support

Then monitor: if the customer updates their card, the next system retry will likely succeed. If not, move to the next situation.

Situation B: Card Is Closed or Expired (Permanent Failure)​

The card cannot be retried successfully. You need the customer to provide a new card before the subscription is automatically cancelled.

  1. Email immediately using the template above

  2. Call the customer if the account is high-value or if email bounces — sometimes a quick call recovers the subscription when email doesn't

  3. Inside UltraCart: manually update the payment method if the customer calls in and provides a new card number (use Agent-Assisted Payments to avoid handling raw card data)

To update the card manually from UltraCart (with customer on the phone):

  1. Open the Auto Order record

  2. Click Edit on the payment method section

  3. Use the agent-assisted payment flow — send the customer a secure update link on their phone/email

  4. The customer enters their card in their browser; you confirm it processed

  5. Save the auto order

Situation C: Subscription Already Cancelled (Retries Exhausted)​

The system has cancelled the subscription. Now you're in winback mode.

  1. Email the customer within 24 hours:

Subject: Your Vitagen Labs subscription — let's make it right

Hi [Name],

Unfortunately your Vitagen Labs subscription was cancelled after several unsuccessful billing attempts. We'd love to have you back.

As a thank you for being a customer, use code [WINBACK15] for 15% off your next order:
[storefront link]

Or reply to this email and we'll help restart your subscription right where you left off.

Thank you,
Vitagen Labs Support

  1. If the customer responds:

    • Take the new card via agent-assisted payment

    • Reactivate the subscription: in the cancelled Auto Order record, click Reactivate (if available) or create a new auto order from their customer record

    • Apply the coupon code to their next order

Step 4: Document the Outcome​

Add a note to the Auto Order record with:

  • What action you took (emailed, called, card updated, winback sent)

  • Date and outcome

  • If customer is unreachable: note that and close the task

Mark the Task as complete in Operations → Tasks.

Escalate to Owner When​

  • Customer is threatening to dispute the charge (do NOT process a refund while a dispute is pending — see handle-a-chargeback.md)

  • Customer is high-value (e.g., has been subscribed for 12+ months) and threatening to leave permanently — owner may want to make a personal call

  • Multiple customers reporting the same card processor issue on the same day (may be a processor outage, not individual card issues)

Prevention (Ongoing)​

Review the Failed Billing report weekly: Operations → Reporting → Available Reports → Auto Order → Failed Billing

Customers with a card expiring soon should be contacted proactively — before the rebill fails. AI Agents can also send subscription update reminders automatically when the "Update credit card" capability is enabled. See 13-ai-agents-chat-sms.md.

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