Shipping and Payment Method Troubeshooting

Are no methods available for your customer to choose during checkout? Is there a method which should be available but does not appear as an option? Follow the steps in this guide to help troubleshoot shipping or payment method availability issues.

Overview

Which shipping / payment methods are available to your customer during checkout is determined by a hierarchy of settings we call Method Restrictions (aka Allowed Methods).

Because shipping and payment methods have multiple levels of qualifications it can sometimes be difficult to identify precisely why a method does not appear during checkout for a specific customer. This troubleshooting guide will assist by providing the settings to check and explanations for them.

Missing Shipping or Payment Method in Checkout Troubleshooting

To find out why there isn't a method available for a specific customer, we'll need to know a few things:

  • Account
  • Customer Group
  • Shipping / Billing Address
  • Shipping / Payment Method which should be available to them

Step 1. Check the Account's Allowed Methods

Open the Account, navigate to the Settings tab and then scroll down to find Account Options. That section contains the account specific Payment Methods, Invoice Payment Methods, and Shipping Methods.

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Payment Methods are ones that customers can select during checkout. Invoice Payment Methods are online methods customers can use to pay an Invoice.

When it says "All Allowed" it means that the Account has access to the methods allowed to them through the Global Method Restrictions.

If Allow all Methods for this Account is set to No, the customers at this Account will only be able to checkout using the methods which are checked off.

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The Account Options are the best place to check first to make sure the Account is allowed to use a certain payment or shipping method.

Step 2. Check the Account Location's Allowed Methods

Account Locations (aka Ship To Locations) can also have specific methods allowed to them. This lets you restrict or allow certain payment / shipping methods when customers from that Account Location are checking out.

Open the Account and navigate to the Ship To tab. Click on the Location row displayed above the addresses.

Under Ship To Settings you'll find the same 3 settings as in the Account Options. This time we're checking that the specific Location at the Account has access to all the methods, or whether there are restrictions for this Location.

If there are more than 1 Location for the Account be sure to check and modify the methods for the Location your customer is ordering from.

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If you get through all the troubleshooting steps and the method is still not available during checkout please doublecheck the Account Location's allowed methods.

Step 3. Check the Global Method Restrictions

If the Account and its Location are both configured to allow all methods, then the Global Method Restrictions are determining which methods they are allowed to use.

Go to Settings > Method Restrictions to see the global defaults for what methods are allowed and to whom.

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A detailed guide for Method Restrictions is available here.

There are sections to set up the restrictions for Shipping Methods, Payment Methods, and Invoice Payment Methods. If they are not enabled, or no option is selected for the specific method then it is not restricted from anyone.

If there is a method which is restricted to "Admin / Mobile Only", or "By Customer Group" and the customer's group is not listed, that is the reason the method does not appear during customer checkout.

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If a method is still not available after confirming that the Account is allowed to use it, the problem must be in the settings for that method.

Step 4. Check the Method's Settings

Navigate to Settings > Payment Methods or Shipping Methods to find the settings for each of the methods. Click on manage to open the settings for the method you're troubleshooting.

Each type of shipping / payment method has different settings, but there are a few consistent options that we'll explore below:

Shipping Methods

Here are the important settings for a Shipping Method which determines whether it will be an option during checkout:

  • Minimum / Maximum Order Amount - Qualifies the Order for the method based on its Grand Total.
  • Maximum Weight - The method is only available when the total weight of all products is less than.
  • Hide all other shipping methods if this is eligible - This setting hides all the other methods if this ones available and could be responsible for hiding the method that the customer expects to use.
  • Enable for Specific Countries & Enable for Specific Regions/States - Check the countries and states that the method is available for based on the Order Shipping Address.
  • Hide Method if SKU not in cart - If set to Yes, the method will only appear when a SKU from the list is in the customer's cart.
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Shipping Methods like UPS, USPS, and FedEx fetch rates through the carrier's API.

If those methods aren't working and all settings are correct there may be a limitation on the shippers end for certain services. For example, UPS Ground has a max shipment weight of 150lbs. There could be an issue with the connection to their API or an issue in your account with the carrier.

Payment Methods

Payment Methods have fewer settings in Zoey to determine if the method is allowed to be used to pay for a customers Order, or the Invoice.

  • Payment Applicable From - Lets you select which countries to allow the payment method to based on Billing Address.
  • Minimum / Maximum Order Amount - Qualifies the Order for the method based on its Grand Total.
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In following these steps you should come across the problem preventing a method from being available for a customer to select during checkout.


How To Check the Methods Available for your Customer's Order During Checkout

As a Zoey Admin you can log in as the customer and test checkout with their draft/cart. To find the customer's draft open the Account and click on the Sales tab. Then click Drafts in the top-right tile.

Your customer's open carts are saved as Drafts and listed here. Click on one to open it up.

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The methods you're able to select in the Admin aren't always the same as what options the customer has while checking out in the storefront.

In the Draft, click on View As Customer in the top-right. That will log you into the customer's Account and bring you to the cart summary.

Once viewing the draft as the customer you can click Checkout to proceed to shipping method selection. The methods you see here are the ones your customer can choose from.

This is the only Shipping Method available because Pickup has "Hide all other shipping methods if this is eligible" = Yes.

Clicking on Continue will then bring you to the Payment Methods where you can see which options are available for this Order.

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Viewing the draft and checking the available methods during storefront checkout is the best way to see what methods are actually available for your customer to place the Order with.