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Troubleshooting Checkout Payment Issues: Step-by-Step Guide

When customers experience issues with their cart or checkout process—such as carts not clearing after an order, duplicate orders, or orders not appearing as expected—these steps can help narrow down the cause. Please follow each step carefully to provide clear information to the Web Ninja Support team if further assistance is needed.

Step 1: Confirm Issue Details

  • Note exactly what is happening (e.g., cart doesn’t clear, duplicate orders are created, order does not appear completed, etc.).
  • If possible, record the specific products, times, and order numbers involved.

Step 2: Identify Which Payment Method Was Used

  • Was the order completed using a credit card (e.g., Stripe, PayPal, Ninja Pay (via Fat Zebra) or another method (“charge to account”, manual payment, etc.)?
  • For troubleshooting, always use the same payment method where the issue was first noticed.

Important: The checkout process often behaves differently for live card payments compared to account charges or test payments.

Step 3: Reproduce the Issue

  1. Log in to your customer account on the website.
  2. Add items to your shopping cart.
  3. Proceed through checkout as a regular customer would.
  4. Complete payment using a live credit card.

    Note: Some sites may allow test coupons to reduce the payment amount. If your site uses coupons, you may wish to ask your admin to set one up for testing purposes. Using real funds ensures the process follows the exact same flow as a real order.

  5. After the payment is completed and the order has processed, check the following:
    • Is the cart empty immediately after order completion?
    • Was the order confirmation received as expected (on-site, via email, etc.)?

Step 4: Check Cart and Orders After Logout/Login

  1. Log out of your account.
  2. Log back in as the same user.
  3. Check if your cart is still empty, or if previous order items have reappeared.
  4. Confirm the order is visible in your order history or confirmation area.

Step 5: Gather Details for Support

  • Document each step above, including:
    • The browser and device used.
    • Type of card/payment method used (Visa, Mastercard etc.).
    • Whether any discounts or coupons were applied.
    • Any messages or errors seen during checkout.

Step 6: Repeat With Variation (If Applicable)

  • Try using a different browser or device to see if the behavior changes.
  • If your site has multiple payment options, test with another method and note if the outcome is different.

Step 7: Share Results with the Web Ninja Support Team

  • Provide as much detail as possible when raising the issue with your support provider.
  • Include timestamps, order numbers, screenshots or screen recordings if available.
  • If multiple users are experiencing the issue, mention if they are using shared logins or individual accounts.

 

Why Use a Live Credit Card for Testing?

The steps the system follows (return paths, completion confirmations, cart clearing) may only occur with a real successful payment. Testing with “charge to account,” “manual payment,” or "direct deposit" may not follow the same logic as a real credit card purchase.

 

If you have followed all above steps and the issue persists, please report the details to Support with all gathered documentation. This information will help technical teams investigate and resolve the checkout problem more efficiently.