“The family paid” can mean they opened the link, submitted a bank payment, received a successful payment result or saw money leave their account. Your bookkeeper needs a more precise answer. This guide separates those checkpoints so a case handoff does not confuse a request for money with a completed receipt.
Separate the four checkpoints
| Checkpoint | What it establishes | What to check next |
|---|---|---|
| Payment link sent or viewed | A request exists or the link was opened | Is there an actual payment attempt and outcome? |
| Payment processing | An attempt is still being processed | Has it succeeded or failed? |
| Payment applied to the case | The case record credits a payment | Does the reference and remaining balance match? |
| Payout deposited | A transfer reached the bank | Which payments, fees and adjustments explain the deposit? |
Stripe documents processing as a state used by asynchronous payment methods and describes payouts separately as transfers from the available balance to the bank. Timing depends on the account, payment method and payout schedule. Use the actual provider record rather than promising a fixed arrival time to every family.
Follow a fictional deposit through the records
Assume a fictional $6,000 case invoice. A $2,000 payment request is sent. Sending it leaves $6,000 uncollected. If the family submits an ACH payment and it is processing, staff should say it is processing. Once a successful $2,000 payment is correctly applied, the case balance is $4,000 before any other adjustments.
The bank deposit is a separate reconciliation. Suppose that payment is later included in a payout with a fictional $12 processing fee and no other activity: $2,000 minus $12 gives a $1,988 deposit. The example illustrates the distinction; $12 is not a FuneralHQ fee quote. A real payout can group several cases and adjustments. Trace its components instead of changing the case payment to match the net bank amount.
Download the payment-status review sheet (CSV)
Review a pending or failed attempt before sending another request
- Open the payment attempt and inspect its latest provider status.
- Compare its reference and amount with the intended case.
- Check whether another successful payment already covers the request.
- If an attempt failed, record the failure and agree the next collection step.
- If the status is unclear, resolve it before asking the family to submit the same amount again.
- Check the case and accounting records after the outcome is known.
A refund needs its own status and balance review. It is not explained by simply subtracting the amount from a deposit. Use the funeral refund workflow for that separate sequence.
How FuneralHQ connects the request to the case
FuneralHQ’s payment workflow distinguishes link states such as sent, viewed, partially paid, paid, cancelled and expired. It also carries a processing indication and a failure reason for relevant attempts. Those distinctions help staff see why a request is still open instead of treating every opened link as collected money.
Payments sit with the case, its documents and QuickBooks workflow. The default sync uses one invoice per case and applies payments to that invoice, with payments entered in QuickBooks read back to the case. Test the particular references, company file and accounting setup your bookkeeper uses. A sync result is still separate from bank reconciliation.
Questions about payment links and settlement
Does a viewed link reduce the balance?
Viewing a link does not itself collect a payment. Verify a payment outcome and the amount applied to the intended invoice before treating the balance as reduced.
Why is the bank deposit smaller than the family payment?
Fees or other payout adjustments may explain a difference, and a payout may combine several payments. Review the payout detail and provider statement. Do not assume the difference is a missing family payment.
Can I test the full workflow in a software demonstration?
Ask FuneralHQ to show a fictional case, a test payment request, its result, the case balance and the accounting destination. Use a demonstration environment and test payments. Record any step that depends on account setup or later bank settlement, rather than treating a guided example as a promise about your live payout timing.
The FuneralHQ advantage
The family balance and the books should agree
FuneralHQ keeps card and ACH activity, payment plans, case balances, and QuickBooks Online connected so staff can answer the family and accounting can reconcile the same record.
The walkthrough separates what ships today from what is in development, then tests FuneralHQ against one of your real workflows.
Challenge us with your workflowAbout the FuneralHQ Editorial Team
This guide was written by the FuneralHQ Editorial Team, the in-house team behind funeral home software used by independent firms to run cases, documents, payments, and QuickBooks sync in one record. Our editorial standards explain how we review product claims, outside sources, automation, updates, and corrections.