Help and crisis runbooks
Step-by-step UK merchant guides for the moments when a card machine, acquirer or rule causes friction. The acquirer-account crises (declined, funds frozen, account terminated, MATCH or TMF listed) all share one recovery route: the right specialist acquirer for your situation. Each runbook is dated, written by Oliver Mackman, and links to the underlying authoritative source (gov.uk, FCA, Mastercard or Visa scheme rules).
Why was my merchant account declined?
The five real reasons UK acquirers decline an application, how underwriting actually works, the MATCH-list mistake to avoid, and how to fix a declined application before you reapply.
My card machine is not working
4-step troubleshoot in order, offline mode by acquirer (Dojo, SumUp, Zettle, Square, Stripe), UK support phone numbers, manual fallback, chargeback risk.
Card surcharging UK: B2B vs B2C
Full B2C ban since 13 January 2018, B2B surcharges still legal with disclosure. Decision tree, common pitfalls, gov.uk source.
Chargeback notification: what to do
Step-by-step response to a chargeback notification from your acquirer. Evidence pack, deadlines, dispute outcomes.
Acquirer terminated your account
What happens, how to read the termination letter, MATCH list risk, and how to find a new high-risk acquirer.
Acquirer froze your settlement funds
Why funds get held, how long it typically takes, and how to push for release with the right evidence pack.
MATCH list listing suspected
How to confirm a MATCH list entry, the 5-year duration, removal options, and the high-risk acquirer route forward.
Refund batch rejected
Why batch rejects fire, the per-acquirer fix sequence, and how to recover refund obligations without exposing chargeback risk.
Processing limit breached
Your acquirer flagged a volume breach. How to read the notice, the limit-uplift request flow, and acquirer-by-acquirer thresholds.
Declined, frozen, terminated or MATCH-listed?
These all resolve the same way: the right specialist UK acquirer for your situation. As a broker we approach the acquirer most likely to accept your profile, including reason-code-aware and high-risk acquirers. The acquirer pays our commission on signup, so it costs you nothing on top, and we never sell your details on.
Get matched to an acquirerLast reviewed: 27 May 2026.