Canary Technologies Partners with Viceroy Hotels & Resorts to Reduce Chargebacks & Fraud via Digital Authorizations
Canary Technologies announced that Viceroy Hotels & Resorts has implemented Canary’s digital credit card authorizations at select properties.
Canary’s Digital Authorizations product is a secure PCI Level-1 compliant authorization solution that replaces arcane, non-compliant paper/PDF third-party authorization forms and prevents chargebacks and fraud. Guests simply click on a text or email link sent by the hotel to fill out their credit card information in a secure form. PCI non-compliant paper credit authorization forms are eliminated, streamlining check-in and improving security.
“Chargebacks are unfortunately all too common in the hotel industry and the issue got even worse during the pandemic,” says Canary Technologies Principal and Co-founder Harman Singh Narula. “Even as the world returned to normal, chargebacks and fraud remain more prevalent than they were at the advent of COVID-19 and at least a semi-regular occurrence at many properties.”
According to Narula, chargebacks can “eat away” between two and four percent of a property’s total revenue. However, by implementing a PCI compliant digital solution, hoteliers can run fraud detection checks that will help reduce chargebacks before they occur. As an added bonus, these digital solutions save both staff and guests time by “getting rid of the need to send insecure paper/PDF forms back and forth via email or fax while also preventing the risk of receiving a huge fine for not being PCI-complaint which can range anywhere between $5,000 to $100,000 per month,” Narula adds.
Viceroy Hotels & Resorts is a global modern luxury brand, inspiring travelers with one-of-a-kind, authentic experiences that bring together provocative design and intuitive service. It has been an early adopter of digital credit card authorizations, having previously implemented a legacy solution. However, Viceroy staff found it cumbersome and difficult to use, and sought a more modern and streamlined user experience.
“Canary provided a solution that was designed to be mobile-first, which vastly improved the experience for both guests and staff,” said Eric Chao, Senior Corporate IT Director at Viceroy Hotels & Resorts. “With Canary, we are now achieving the chargebacks and fraud reductions that we expected, and the process is greatly improved for our guests. We’re very happy with the impact Canary has made so far and are looking forward to implementing it across more Viceroy properties.”