Answers to frequently asked questions

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Generic questions

What is Level 3 data?

Level 3 data (also known as Line Item Detail or LID) is the standard financial data captured for a payment card transaction plus line item detail descriptions for the goods or services provided with individual VAT amounts.

Can ITS solutions accept any type of card?

There are three main purchasing card programmes and the system supports templates specific to each scheme including the latest VGIS requirements

Visa Purchasing (including Government Procurement Card)
MasterCard OneCard
Amex CPC

ITS solutions can also be configured to accept the following standard debit & credit cards

Visa
Visa Debit
MasterCard
MasterCard Debit
Maestro
Maestro International
Visa Electron

Additionally, the following schemes can be facilitated depending on the product

JCB
Amex
Diners

Please note that some schemes are acquirer dependent and may require an additional merchant account.

What is authorisation?

Before a payment can be made, it must first be authorised by the bank that issued the card to check the cardholder has enough funds in their account and will be able to honour the payment. There are three main methods of obtaining authorisation:

Real time authorisation - one transaction is authorised immediately as it is processed
Batch authorisation - allows the operator to manually connect to the authorisation host in order to authorise one or more transactions during a single session
Pre authorisation - allows the operator to obtain confirmation that funds are available and sets aside the amount on the card holder's account in advance of dispatching goods or services. The authorisation is held on the system for a set period of time without debiting the cardholder's account and the transaction can be completed once goods have arrived at their destination

The type of authorisation available is dependent on the product.

What is settlement?

Settlement is the process by which authorised transactions are processed through the banking system so that the money is collected from the cardholders account and transferred into that of the supplier. By using a credit, debit or purchasing card, this process is automated by the systems used by ITS and the banks.

What is the difference between enhanced and addendum data?

These terms mean the same thing; they are both used in the industry to describe the transaction information captured during purchasing card transactions.

What are commodity codes?

Commodity codes are HM Revenue and Customs approved numerical codes that are used to apply a general description to goods and services provided by suppliers participating in purchasing card programs. The codes allow the cardholder and HM Revenue and Customs to understand the nature of the goods and services in any given transaction in terms of VAT. The codes are pre-determined in accordance to customs tariffs and a full listing can be obtained from your acquiring bank.

What is an acquiring bank?

In order to accept card payments you must first be set up with a merchant bank account by an acquiring bank who are usually a division of a high street bank. A unique number is allocated and ITS will not be able to submit payments without this reference number or receive clearance from the bank, before we can start submitting card payments. ITS solutions are accredited by all the major UK acquiring banks:

Streamline Merchant Services (including Royal Bank of Scotland and NatWest)
Barclaycard Payment Acceptance
Bank of Scotland
Lloyds TSB Cardnet
HSBC
American Express

What is an MCC code?

A MCC or Merchant Category Code is allocated by the acquiring Bank and describes the merchant's business activities.

What are product codes?

Product codes are also known as PLU (Product Look Up) and are unique reference codes that refer to a particular item or service and are used for stock update and reconciliation purposes. The codes can be alpha (letters) or numeric (numbers) or a combination of both and are associated with a product description that gives a brief summary of the type of item or service. Some companies may only use one or two codes whilst others will use several thousand, both of which can be accommodated.

Can I use my own product codes?

Yes, our off-the-shelf stand-alone solutions incorporate a product code maintenance facility where you can add, modify and delete product information. The following information is required

Product code
Unit cost
Product description
Unit of measure
Commodity code
VAT category

In some cases, ITS will create a product code database on your behalf free of charge as part of the initial set up process. Our interfaced solutions allow you to utilise your own product management and invoicing applications.

What do we do if a transaction declines?

You should contact your customer and obtain either another card number or an alternative means of payment.

Why don't ITS solutions work out the VAT for me?

Although ITS solutions could easily work out the VAT, the rules set by HM Revenue and Customs insist that the merchant is responsible for its own VAT calculations.

Can I have an ITS solution at head office?

Yes, if one of your branches has a purchasing card customer, they can telephone details to head office for input onto that system for processing.

How long will it take to get an ITS solution and start processing payments?

Our standalone solutions are typically delivered within two to five working days from receipt of payment.

Due to the nature of our interfaced solutions, the standard delivery is six to twelve weeks depending on your in-house skills. You must ensure that you are set up with a merchant account at an acquiring bank before placing an order

ITS is a software provider and acts as a third party to facilitate the flow of data through the banking system. Your acquiring bank would actually settle the funds with your bank (high street) account. ITS is unable to provide a payment solution unless you have a valid merchant account

We are accredited with all the major UK acquiring banks:

Streamline Merchant Services (including Royal Bank of Scotland and Natwest)
Barclaycard Payment Acceptance
Bank of Scotland
Lloyds TSB Cardnet
HSBC
American Express

From receipt of a purchase order, we will seek clearance from your acquiring bank on the supplied merchant ID.

How long does it take for funds to reach my bank account?

Settlement normally takes approximately four working days from submission to the banking authority, but may vary for certain retail solutions.

Will our customer receive VAT information?

Yes, our systems are fully compliant with banking and VAT rules. Depending on the level of addendum data, your acquiring bank will facilitate the flow of VAT information.

We cannot send a cheque with our order

No problem. Send us a purchase order stating any necessary references. We will invoice you in advance and on receipt of payment will set up your chosen solution.

What are your hours of support?

ITS run a 24-hour operation with business hours client support as standard. We are able to provide additional bespoke support depending on specific customer requirements.

How do I contact Client Services?

If you are an existing customer you can contact our Client Services team on 0845 504 6231 or alternatively email client.services@interactivets.com

New customers, please contact our Sales team on 0845 504 6330 or email sales@interactivets.com

I wish to make a complaint, who do I need to speak to?

Please put complaints in writing to Client Services either by post or email client.services@interactivets.com. You should expect to receive a response to your complaint within two working days of receipt.

Product-specific questions

Can I use an ITS solution on my trade counter?

Procurer Online: No, this solution is used for mail order and telephone transactions

Procurer ERP: Yes, when used in conjunction with ITS Chip & PIN

Can I use it on more than one PC?

Procurer Online: Yes, it is web hosted and can be accessed from any PC with web connection. However, each login is unique and can therefore only be used by one user at any one time.

Procurer ERP: n/a

Do we keep the PC on overnight?

Procurer Online: No, transactions are carried out in real time and upload directly into the ITS transaction database.

Procurer ERP: n/a

Do I need a dedicated telephone line?

Procurer Online: No, transactions are carried out in real time via a web connection and upload directly into the ITS transaction database therefore a dedicated telephone line is not required.

Procurer ERP: ERP operates in a similar way to Procurer Online and therefore a dedicated line is not required.

Why do I need to format payment requests according to ITS specification?

Procurer ERP: ITS provide a specification based on banking and scheme requirements.

Procurer Online: n/a

Can http request be password secured?

Procurer ERP: Yes, a facility is available to identify your requests by supplier ID and password match. All that is required is an additional item in the XML format