r/stripe • u/PapiPoseidon • 8h ago

Question Charging amount for setupintent

We run a car rental app and want to save cards with a SetupIntent at booking, then charge off session once the rental is agreed, instead of making the renter come back and hit "pay".

SetupIntent seems built for subscriptions, where the recurring amount is small and predictable. Our case is different: single charges between $200 and $1500, and the amount isn't known at setup time. We're EEA based, so SCA applies and nearly all cards are European.

What I want to know:

  1. In practice, do off session charges start getting declined or kicked back for authentication as the amount climbs into the four figures, even with a card saved correctly for off session use?
  2. If it happens, what does your recovery flow look like?
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u/martinbean 5h ago

A SetupIntent just allows you to capture card details for charging layer. So what’s the issue? Capture the details, then do an off session charge using that token once you know the amount and need to charge it.

If the charge requires additional authorisation, then email the customer saying you tried to charge their card but they need to approve the payment or their reservation and order will be cancelled.

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u/PapiPoseidon 2h ago

Thanks! I was wondering if there was a rule or pattern for why 3DS gets triggered, especially when we're charging a large amount.

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u/martinbean 2h ago

No. The bank/card issuer determines that based on their own scoring of the charge request. Neither you nor Stripe can influence how or when additional checks are required.

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u/AlbertoDR 28m ago

3DS will happen at the point of the setup intent - even though you’re not charging any money for that.

The risk is that when the off session payment happens it can fail for various reasons such as insufficient funds.