This article is about how we support breaking up large payments into regular small payments on a payment plan.
When Do We Use Payment Plans?
We will only be using payment plans for large payments with a long lead time — typically this will be the Year 2, 4 and 6 camps and the China trip. We will also be able to support payment plans in 2019 for the annual Essential Items charges (school fees).
How Do I Get On A Payment Plan?
For items like school camps, we will automatically add you to a payment plan. For example, the Year 4 camp this year has a payment plan, and to get onto it you follow these steps:
- There is a normal Compass Event that has the deposit charge ($50) and consent for the camp. Parents need to provide payment & consent by May 31.
- Once you have provided payment & consent you will be added to the payment plan, which you can use to pay the remaining camp fee ($245)
Do I Have to Use the Payment Plan?
No – the payment plan is entirely optional. With the payment plan you can choose to pay the outstanding balance in one payment, or on multiple payments on the dates in the plan, or you can use another method altogether (EFTPOS, cash, cheque or CSEF).
How Do I Use a Payment Plan?
You will generally receive a targeted news item or an email when a payment plan has been made available to you. Payment plans must be completed using the Compass website, they’re not visible in the Compass App.
When you log into the website you will see a notification at the top of your news feed indicating that there is a payment ready for your attention.
When you click on the notification you will be shown the list of payment plans that you have available, both current and in the past. Click on the one that you wish to complete.
When you click on the name of the plan you will see the overview screen that gives the purpose of the payment, you should click on Proceed to subscribe to the plan.
You will then see a screen where you can see the charge. The default charge will be the amount that most parents will pay, so you should leave it as is. If you have made partial payment through another method (e.g.: CSEF) then your outstanding balance will be lower, so you can change the total on this screen to match.
For example: Year 4 Camp is $295. You have paid the $50 deposit, and used $125 of CSEF, meaning you still have $120 left to pay. The default amount on this screen will be $245 ($295 – $50 deposit) but you should edit it to be $120.
When you’re done, click Enter Payment Details.
On this screen you can enter your card details (you can use a credit card or debit card) and then choose either Pay Now or Pay in Instalments. Pay Now will pay the entire amount in one charge, and Pay in Instalments will bill your credit card on the dates in the plan. Each payment will be the total amount owing divided by the number of payments.
For example: if there are 5 payments in the plan and you owe $245, you will be billed $49 on each date in the payment plan. If you owe $120 then you will be billed $24 on each date in the payment plan.
Once you have completed the payment plan you don’t need to do anything else. Compass will automatically bill your credit or debit card on the dates in the plan.
What if a Payment Fails?
Compass will automatically retry each payment 3 times. If the payment fails 3 times then the school will be notified, and we will contact you to arrange alternative payment arrangements.
I Have Questions
Please don’t hesitate to contact the school. The Business Manager and office team are very happy to answer questions and to help you get set up with all aspects of Compass.