One of the most important changes that are taking place regarding online bookings is due to the European regulation PSD2. PSD2 came into effect on January 1, 2021, requiring hotels in Europe to adapt the payment process to this new regulation.
But, what is PSD2 and why is it affecting the hotel industry?
PSD2 has been created to make online payments more secure and better protect users. One of the most important parts of this legislation is the so-called SCA (Strong Customer Authentication). SCA establishes that in order to approve the online payment, the credit card provider (VISA, Mastercard, etc.) needs to receive 2 out of the 3 possible types of authentication:
- Something you know - for example, the PIN
- Something you have - for example, the card or the mobile phone
- Something you are - for example, your fingerprint
While in the past it was possible to make a card charge with only one type of authentication (something you know - the credit card details), now with SCA, it is not enough and the cardholder must authenticate their card with a second method at the time of payment. For the hotel industry, this can be a challenge in many situations, such as when advance charges need to be made or cancellation costs need to be charged without the customer being present. So, how to solve this and ensure that the hotelier can continue to receive payments from their customers?
The solution from Redforts Software
Redforts has developed an SCA-enabled payment gateway that allows you to request your clients to make online payments with their credit card, Paypal, Bizum, iDeal, and almost any other existing online payment method. Payments are processed automatically by Redforts and recorded in the reservation. Customers will be able to see the payments made and check if another payment is necessary and the deadlines to do so. And the best part is, this is not ONLY for direct bookings, it is also possible to request these payments for any reservation, regardless of where it was made: on your website, by phone, or even from a channel or OTAs.