If you’re renting a motorcycle, you may be asked to pay a refundable security deposit to cover any potential damages or additional fees arising during the rental period. However, how the deposit is processed can be confusing, especially regarding pre-authorisations and charges. In this article, we will explain the difference between a pre-authorisation and a charge for motorcycle rental deposits, so you can better understand the process.

What is a pre-authorisation?

A pre-authorisation is a temporary hold placed by a merchant on a customer’s credit card, and funds are reserved for future payment transactions. During the hold period, the funds are unavailable to the customer – they won’t be able to withdraw it from an ATM or spend it elsewhere. Although the funds cannot be accessed in their account, no money has been debited in the pre-auth; it is reserved.

Customers need to understand that a pre-authorisation or retention is not a charge but a temporary hold on the funds. This means the funds are not charged to the customer’s credit card but held for a certain period. Usually, it takes a few days until the rental period ends and all charges have been settled.

Refunding a security deposit

Once the rental period is over and all charges have been settled, the pre-authorisation or retention will be released, and the funds will become available to the customer again. This means that the security deposit will not be returned as a refund, but rather the pre-authorisation or retention will disappear from the customer’s credit card statement.

It’s essential to note that the time it takes for the pre-authorisation or retention to disappear from the customer’s credit card statement may vary depending on the credit card issuer and can take up to several days. However, the funds will eventually become available to the customer once the pre-authorisation or retention is released. Typically, in Canary Ride, we cancel the pre-authorisation right away when the client returns the motorcycle; in some cases, it could take till the next work day if your return is on the weekend. However, your bank is responsible for unblocking the funds, so if you think it takes too much time, we highly recommend contacting your bank or credit card provider. They will try to help you because from our side it is cancelled and we can’t do much more. Usually, your bank should help you within a day to release your funds.

Charge vs Pre-Auths in the refund

The security deposit won’t be returned as a refund. Still, the pre-authorisation will disappear from your credit card statement once the rental period is over and all charges have been settled. Unlike a charge, which will appear as a transaction on your credit card statement, a pre-authorisation is only a temporary hold on your credit limit. It will not appear as a separate transaction. Once the pre-authorisation is released, it will disappear from your credit card statement so that you won’t see it as a separate charge or credit. This means that the funds will become available again on your credit card once the pre-authorisation is released, and you can use them for other transactions or purchases.

Please note that the pre-authorisation is impossible in the Maestro card case, as they don’t allow it.

If you need help or assistance, you can always contact us at booking@canaryride.com or via phone at +34 828 685 006. We highly recommend talking to your bank first, as they are responsible for releasing your funds.