I've successfully used the Italo website to purchase tickets before, but the past few days it keeps saying "payment declined" when I try to pay. I checked with my credit card company and they assure me the problem is on the Italo side of the transaction. Have others been having problems with the Italo website the past few days?
Posted by
Northamptonshire, England
32751 posts
You did explicitly notify the card company prior to attempting the purchase to expect the foreign transaction?
Posted by
Pa and Italy
4152 posts
We had the same issue last week and it was the credit card company putting a fraud hold on the card. They called us 3 days later to see if we were the ones trying to make the purchase (way to be on top of things PNC bank!!!). We ended up using a different card without issue.
Donna
Posted by
Columbus, OH, USA
2026 posts
Last year I had a problem completing my purchase with Italo because I foolishly decided, for whatever reason, that I didn't want to bother calling my CC first. Very dumb on my part. When the first transaction failed, I called the CC. When the second effort came back with a message to the effect of " You cannot complete the transaction because you already have these tickets" I called the CC again. Did I have zero tickets, or duplicates? The Capital One rep suggested she make a three way call to Italo to iron it out, and it was happily resolved in a minute, the two of them chatting merrily while I just repeatedly mumbled " Thank you! Grazie!" into the phone. Perhaps your credit card will be as accommodating. I report the whole story as a reminder to myself and as a tip to others. We rode several Italo trains on that trip and they were great. Good luck.
Posted by
OP
WPB, FL & Firenze
3112 posts
I talked to the authorization department at my credit card company and they assured me it wasn't a denial or hold on their end. I also tried another credit card with same "payment denied" result. Guess I'll just wait a few days and try again. If still having the payment problem, I'll see if the bank will call Italo and resolve it. Thanks to everyone for their feedback.
Posted by
Grass Valley, California
506 posts
I totally agree with the others to check that you actually called and notified your credit card co. I had my Discover Card stopped on the United Airline web site after I purchased the tickets, but when I went to purchase the upgrades they put a fraud stop on my card. I did not even think about calling them first because I order things on line all the time. What a mess to work out on the phone with United. So when I ordered tickets for the Acadamia and Colleseum I called the credit card first. The funny thing is Visa acted like I was crazy for calling them. But I can tell you they are getting really tough on these fraud alerts.
Posted by
Mpls, MN
1003 posts
I have had this happen several times over the last 2 years and I am guessing it is the cc causing the problem. The last time I booked tickets online with ITALO was in October 2014 and yes, the same thing happened to me and this was AFTER I had called my Cap. 1 cc to tell them about my upcoming tkt purchase. Had been through the entire booking process and got "payment declined." I was not a happy camper. I called Cap. 1 again and had the operator stay on the line while I went through the entire process again & this time it went through. June 2013 was the first time I booked tkts with ITALO and called Cap 1 to notify them and payment was declined. Another call to Cap. 1 and this time it went through. Sept. 2013 booked again with ITALO. Called Cap. 1 and went through the first time. Good luck!