Customer Was Charged But Didn't Receive Credits

Customer Was Charged But Didn't Receive Credits

If a customer tapped or scanned to pay and was charged, but the machine didn't dispense plays or credits, here's what happened and what to do.

What Causes This

When a customer pays, the ArcadePay Controller processes the payment through Stripe and then immediately sends a pulse signal to the machine to trigger the credits. In rare cases, a brief cellular connectivity hiccup at the exact moment of payment can cause the pulse signal to fail — the payment clears, but the machine never gets the "go" signal.

The ArcadePay Controller logs every transaction, including whether the pulse fired. This means you can always verify what happened and issue a refund quickly.

Firmware note: An older firmware version had a specific bug where payments were accepted but pulses weren't sent. This has been identified and fixed. Controllers running the latest ArcadePay firmware do not experience this issue. If you're seeing this repeatedly, contact support and we'll confirm your device is on the latest firmware.

A note on pulse machines: Pulse-based arcade machines don't send a confirmation signal back to the controller — this is a hardware limitation of pulse technology and applies to all cashless systems (ArcadePay, Nayax, or others). The controller can confirm it sent the pulse, but the machine's internal board doesn't acknowledge receipt. That's why the pulse log exists: it's your best tool for tracking what was sent and when.

Note: Cash or coin payments are handled through a direct wired connection and are not affected by cellular signal issues. If a customer paid with cash and did not receive plays, check the machine's coin mechanism directly.

How to Confirm What Happened

On desktop or mobile browser:

  • Open your ArcadePay dashboard.
  • Go to Reports → Transactions.
  • Click the Cashless tab.
  • Find the transaction in question (filter by machine, date, or amount to narrow it down).
  • Look at the Pulse column or transaction detail. If the pulse did not fire, it will show No Pulse or an empty pulse count.

    • On mobile (Pulse Table view):

  • Open the ArcadePay app.
  • Tap More in the bottom navigation.
  • Tap Pulse Table.

    • The Pulse Table shows a full record of every pulse event — what was sent, when, and whether it fired — making it easy to pinpoint any missed credit delivery.

    This confirms the payment went through but credits were not delivered.

    How to Issue a Refund

    Once you confirm the pulse did not fire, issue a refund directly from the dashboard:

  • Find the transaction in the Cashless tab (step above).
  • Click the ⋮ menu next to the transaction.
  • Choose Refund Payment.

    • The full amount is returned to the customer's card within a few business days.

    For a more detailed walkthrough of the refund process, see Refund a Payment.

    How to Prevent This

    The most common cause is a weak or unstable cellular signal at the machine location. A few things to check:

    Check your signal strength. In your dashboard, go to Machines and look at the signal reading for the affected controller. A reading of 15 or above is the target. If you're consistently seeing readings of 8–10 or lower, the signal is too weak and you may see occasional missed pulses.

    Reposition the antenna. The ArcadePay Controller's antenna uses a magnetic base. If it is tucked behind metal panels or sitting inside the machine cabinet, the metal walls absorb much of the cellular signal. Mount the antenna on the outside of the machine — the top or back panel works well. A clear line of sight makes a real difference.

    Important: If the signal drops below a usable threshold, the ArcadePay Controller goes offline and stops accepting payments until the signal recovers. This means it won't take a customer's money when it can't deliver the credits. The missed-pulse scenario typically happens only during a brief, momentary dropout at the exact time of payment — not during a sustained outage.

    For a full guide on signal troubleshooting and antenna placement, see What to Do If Your ArcadePay Controller Goes Offline.

    If This Happens Repeatedly

    An occasional missed pulse due to a signal hiccup is rare. If you're seeing this more than once or twice, it usually means the signal at that location is borderline and the antenna needs repositioning.

    Contact ArcadePay Support with the machine name and device ID (found in your dashboard under Machines). We can pull the full pulse log and connectivity history to identify the pattern.