Working with Payments

Track payments made by customers and allocate them against invoices. If you already manage payments in a separate accounts package and do not need to track them here, the payments module can be disabled.

Adding a New Payment

From the customer’s account

Use this when the payment covers multiple invoices, or when you do not know which invoice it relates to.

Steps:

1. Go to the customer’s account
2. Click Actions menu > Payment
3. Fill in the payment details
4. Click Save
5. If the allocation needs adjusting, use Actions menu > Alter Payment Allocation

From a specific invoice

Use this when the payment is for a single known invoice. The invoice selection is pre-filled for you.

Steps:

1. View the invoice
2. Click Add Payment for Invoice in the left-hand menu
3. Fill in the payment details
4. Click Save

Payment Details

Payment References

• Our Reference: Internal reference only, not shown to customers
• Customer’s Reference: Shown on bills alongside the payment acknowledgement

Payment Amount

The total amount received. Enter a negative amount to record a refund or rebate paid back to the customer — see Recording a Payment Refund below.

Payment Method

Select the payment method used. Choose Customer Default to use the method set on the customer’s account.

Statement Details

Payments normally appear on the customer’s next bill. Use these fields to show a payment on a specific invoice instead.

Collecting via Direct Debit or Card

If the customer pays by direct debit (GoCardless) or card (Stripe), the platform can submit the collection to the provider for you rather than just recording a payment manually.

Standard two-step collection

Create the payment first using the steps above, then collect it from the payment record.

• Direct debit: View the payment, then use Actions menu > Collect by Direct Debit. Select the account to use and confirm.
• Card: View the payment, then use Actions menu > Collect from Card. Select the card to use and confirm.

The platform submits the collection to the provider. See Direct Debit Accounts and Payment Cards for processing timelines and status tracking.

One-step collection (Expert Mode)

In Expert Mode, you can create a payment and submit it to the provider in a single action using either of these approaches:

From the payment form: When creating a payment in Expert Mode, a Collect Payment section appears at the bottom of the form. Select the direct debit account or card to use and the platform saves the payment and submits the collection together.

From an invoice: View the invoice and select Collect Payment from the Expert menu. Select the account or card to use and confirm. The platform creates the payment record and submits the collection in one step. See Collect Payment for full details.

Recording a Payment Refund

Use a negative payment amount when you have physically returned money to a customer — for example, a bank transfer or card refund.

This is different from a transaction refund, which creates a credit line on an invoice. A negative payment records that cash has left your business and adjusts the customer’s balance accordingly.

Steps:

1. Go to the customer’s account
2. Click Actions menu > Payment
3. Enter the amount as a negative number (for example, -50.00 to record a £50 refund)
4. Set the Payment Method to show how the money was returned
5. Add a reference in Our Reference or Customer’s Reference if needed
6. Click Save

What happens:

• The negative payment is recorded on the account
• The customer’s balance adjusts to reflect the money returned
• The refund appears on their next bill as a payment line

Example: A customer overpaid by £100 and you have returned the money by bank transfer. Go to their account, use Actions menu > Payment, enter -100.00, set the method to BACS, and save.

Important: This records the refund in the platform only. You still need to process the actual bank or card transaction through your payment provider.

Not sure which method to use? See the Applying Credits and Refunds guide.

Managing Payments

Editing a Payment

Steps:

1. View the payment
2. Click Edit
3. Make the necessary changes
4. Click Save

If you changed the amount, reallocate the payment afterwards. Recreate any affected bill PDFs.

Deleting a Payment

Only delete a payment that was entered by mistake. For a payment that has genuinely failed, use Reverse Payment instead.

Steps:

1. View the payment
2. Click Actions menu > Delete
3. Adjust any later payment allocations if needed
4. Recreate affected bill PDFs

Reversing a Failed Payment

Use this when a payment fails after entry — for example, a direct debit returned for insufficient funds.

Steps:

1. View the payment
2. Click Actions menu > Reverse Payment
   • For payments collected through a payment integration, use the Expert Mode menu instead
3. The payment remains visible on the account but no longer reduces the balance

Payment integrations usually handle failed payments automatically.

Reinstating a Reversed Payment

If a reversed payment later succeeds, you can reinstate it rather than entering it again.

Steps:

1. View the reversed payment
2. Click Actions menu > Reinstate Payment
   • For payments collected through a payment integration, use the Expert Mode menu instead

Payment integrations usually handle this automatically.

Payment Allocation

The platform allocates payments to invoices automatically. It first looks for an invoice (or combination of invoices) that matches the payment amount exactly. If no match is found, it allocates oldest-first.

Negative payments allocate against invoices with a negative outstanding balance (where the customer is in credit).

To reallocate manually:

Steps:

1. View the payment
2. Click Actions menu > Manually Allocate Payment
3. Adjust the amounts against each invoice
4. Click Allocate Payments

A warning appears if the allocated amounts do not add up to the payment total.