Fallback processing occurs when a PIN pad fails to read an EMV chip card during a transaction. If the chip cannot be read, the PIN pad will prompt the customer to swipe their card using the magstripe.With magstripe transactions, the possibility of fraud is high and may result in fees. If your PIN pads are frequently prompting to swipe the magstripe during transactions, you may need an upgrade or replacement.
In addition to a PIN pad failing to read an EMV chip card, fallback processing can also occur if:
- A customer doesn’t know or can’t remember their PIN
It is not recommended to intentionally cause the PIN pad to go into fallback processing - A customer inserts their card upside down or backwards
It is important to watch each transaction closely to ensure they are not trying to get the pin pad to intentionally fail
It is important to know that merchants are also limited to the amount of fallback transactions they can perform. If this limit is exceeded, it could result in additional fines from the card brands. The overall rate of fallback transactions should not exceed 2% of transactions being processed.
Please contact CHS Payment Solutions at 800-852-5301 if you have any questions about fallback processing or EMV chip transactions.
