What is a virtual credit card?
A virtual credit card is a single use credit card that your company may use to pay for flights or hotels on your behalf. As the name "virtual" implies, no plastic credit card exists. Rather, Clarcity automatically generates a new credit card number when you make a reservation and sends the card to the airline or hotel.
How do I know whether I can use a virtual credit card to book a hotel?
You will see the virtual credit card as a payment option on the hotel purchase page if your company allows you to use a virtual card:
How do I complete a reservation using a virtual credit card?
1. Check the box next to the virtual card payment option on the hotel purchase page:
2. Check that a fax number is displayed in the Hotel Fax # field. If no number is displayed, contact the hotel to get the correct fax number and enter it into this field. A fax number is necessary because hotels require a credit card authorization form to be sent when a plastic credit card is not present.
3. Check the appropriate box and enter the amount of any allowances for meals, incidentals, or other expenses that your company may allow you to charge to the virtual card. If your company does not allow you to charge any such expenses to your virtual card, leave these fields blank. Do not enter the amount of the room charge here.
4. Add any special requests by checking the Hotel - Other box and entering the special request into the text field. If there is a charge associated with the special request that your company policy permits you to incur, enter the amount into the Amount box. If there is no charge associated with the special request, enter $0.00 into the Amount box.
5. Select Purchase. Clarcity will book your room, generate your virtual card, and fax the authorization form to the hotel. Clarcity will also confirm that the authorization form was received.
If Clarcity receives confirmation that the authorization form was received within 60 seconds of making the reservation, you will see a notification message. Otherwise, Clarcity will send you an email when we receive confirmation that the authorization form was received.
If we cannot confirm that the the authorization form was received within one hour after you made your reservation, you will receive an email with a notification that the fax failed and a link to re-send the fax. Here are the steps to re-send the authorization form.