This message serves to explain how our credit card preauthorizations work, alert existing customers to a slight change in that process, and explain the reasons for that change.
Going forward, you may notice that our preauthorizations may start to be slightly more than your ultimate invoice. Our software is being reset to preauthorize an additional $10 automatically, and we may ultimately adjust this to an additional $20. Here is why.
We initially chose to not add an additional preauthorization amount. We wanted to minimize placing a hold on cards for any more than necessary, to support our more cost sensitive customers. Unfortunately, some customers have expressed frustration recently due to the impact of how the banking system handles credit card preauthorizations. And, we have realized that others have been effected (albeit without being bothered). When the credit card preauthorization is even slightly less than the final invoice, some banks automatically separate the final transaction from the preauthorization. Instead of the preauthorization automatically being replaced by the final invoice, a duplicate charge may remain until it automatically disappears after several business days.
Unlike a gas station that preauthorizes for the maximum potential charge and stops the transaction at that amount or a hotel that places a hold for potential incidental charges beyond the room rate and tax, we had previously leaned toward a lower preauthorization amount. We did this knowing that there may be some additional charges for per item pricing. We will now be seeking to strike a better balance among the needs of our different customers in this regard.
The credit card preauthorization balance is not an exact science because of what we just described above about how the banks process estimated preauthorizations. Our new approach is intended to strike the best balance possible among the slightly different needs and priorities of our different customers.
Our service enables people to exchange a cost in the value of time put into doing chores (ar time and cost spent driving to a drop off laundry service) for a dollar cost for a service that saves time and allows people to re-invest their time in things that provide either a non-monetary return or a greater financial return from how our customers use their newfound free time.
On aggregate, if you are in the group that prefers the old approach to the new approach, we trust that the aggregate value of time saved will still exceed any inconvenience from our attempt to strike this balance among our customers.
Sincerely,
The Marin Wash and Fold Team