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Why is there a bank account charge on an unexpected date?

Why you may see a bank charge earlier than expected, and how Nettla's auth-capture payment process works and affects your refund eligibility.

Written by Nettla

Nettla, like many other booking providers, uses a payment mechanism known as "auth-capture". This means that when you book, an amount is first reserved on your card, and only charged (captured) at a later point.

The 6-day rule

Nettla can hold a reservation on your card for up to 6 days. This is due to card scheme rules (Visa and Mastercard) that limit how long a reservation can be held before it must either be captured or released.

If your session takes place within 6 days of when you booked, the reserved amount stays on your card until the session is complete, and is then charged automatically.

If your session takes place more than 6 days after you booked, the reserved amount will be automatically charged on the 6th day from your booking date. This does not mean you have been charged early for nothing — it is simply how the payment needs to be processed given card scheme rules.

Court bookings and pay your part

For court bookings where players pay their own share, Nettla always reserves the full court cost on the lead booker's card at the time of booking. This is necessary because neither the club nor Nettla knows at that point whether other players will join and pay their parts.

For example: if a court costs £40 in total, £40 is reserved on the lead booker's card at the time of booking. If other players join and pay their share, those amounts are reserved on their own cards separately.

After the session ends, Nettla calculates the final payment amounts 4 hours later. The lead booker is then charged only their own share, and any amount covered by joining players is returned to them. Whether this appears as a quick reservation adjustment or a real refund depends on the 6-day rule above.

This means it is possible to temporarily see a larger charge on your card than your final share of the cost. This is expected behaviour and not an error. See the article "How does payment work for court bookings where players pay their own share?" for a full explanation.

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