How Address Verification Service in Canada Can Save Your Day?
According to the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre (CAFC), Canadians lost over CAD 230 million to fraud in 2021. The dependency on digital and cloud platforms puts our sensitive data within reach of cyber criminals.
Credit card theft is the most common fraud in the country. Thus, eCommerce businesses must secure themselves from these common problems. An address verification service, or AVS, is one of the most effective ways to prevent fraud.
A fraud and chargeback prevention system relies on an address verification service. It helps verify that the individual placing the order and the cardholder is the same person. This blog will explore the importance of address verification services. You will also learn why you should invest in them.
What is an Address Verification Service?
An address verification service, AVS handles verifying the customer’s entered address has registration with major shipping carriers. It cross-verifies the address of a customer’s order with the records in their bank. This service eliminates unauthorized users from using credit cards on eCommerce portals.
Canadian businesses prefer multilayered protection systems like PostGrid to avoid online fraud. Address verification services are part of international standards for debit and credit cards.
CVV and AVS: How They are Preventing Credit Card Fraud?
Customers these days might have an overwhelming experience while making a buy online. Merchants often ask for the credit card number, name, CVV code, and complete address. This extra information helps customers and merchants confirm credit card purchases.
When a credit card is absent, a verified address helps check that the customer is the cardholder. Your business can also use address verification services. It would help you to add an extra layer of security.
- Card Verification Value (CVV or CVV2): The last three numbers are on the back of a debit or credit card.
- AVS: It is a numeric address verification system that verifies customer information. It uses the records present on the card issuer.
Understanding Address Verification Services With Examples
Example 1,
Suppose a cybercriminal has stolen Emma’s credit card information. He did this by hacking into a company’s database. The cybercriminal can access Emma’s full name, credit card number, and CVV code. Yet, the criminal does not have the address information for Emma’s card. A merchant can use an address verification service AVS to decline any buy made by the cyber thief. Only the genuine cardholder has the address information.
Example 2,
Suppose Eric has forgotten his credit card on the checkout counter of a grocery store. Some random person takes his card to make an online sale. This thief might have the actual card itself with a CVV code on the back. Yet, he needs address information to make successful purchases online. A merchant using an address verification service API can avoid fraud and chargeback.
Example 3,
Suppose Henry dropped his wallet while filling gas into his pickup truck. This wallet contains all his credit cards, debit cards, and a driving license. A not-so-innocent citizen picks up his wallet and goes online to buy a new smartphone. The online shopping merchant will ask for the CVV code and address verification.
This thief will have both because he has access to the credit card with CVV and licenses with the address. In this scenario, the merchant won’t be able to do much to avoid this fraudulent transaction. Yet, the merchant will likely win a chargeback dispute because it relied on an address verification service AVS.
After reading these examples, you might think that an address verification service is not a perfect system. But it adds a valuable extra layer of security for card-not-present online purchases.
An address verification service protects both consumers and merchants from fraud. For this reason, online merchants prefer using an address verification service AVS as an extra security layer. Every few extra seconds in the sale are worthy of additional protection.
Address Verification Service Streamlines the Checkout Process
Verifying addresses is essential to ensure the product goes to the correct place. Your business has to pay for the shipping cost to make successful deliveries. Sometimes, you can even burn money on an order if you don’t verify the order. Yet, proving the correctness of addresses isn’t only the reason to use an address verification service.
An effective address verification service API improves the customer experience and increases conversion rates. Here’s how;
Simplification of the Checkout Process
People prefer buying products with a straightforward checkout process. Spending more time on the checkout page might change their minds about purchasing. Thus, eCommerce businesses must make their checkout process as smooth as possible.
An address verification service helps auto-complete forms when the user gives enough information. This information could be critical for auto-completing the billing section of a checkout page.
Don’t Use Pop-Ups
Customers hate it when they see pop-up windows appear out of nowhere. A real-time address verification service can check each field when a user enters data.
Format Addresses in the Right Way
To get the best results in shipping, you have to format the addresses in a standard format. You can use auto-complete systems to ensure the addresses have a correct format according to the destination. It is important if your business ships overseas and formats addresses in many ways.
Also Read: International Address Verification Services
Why Address Verification Service is a Big Deal for Canada?
Data accuracy is critical to avoid scams and fraud in the digital age. A leading digital and leading economy like Canada also faces vital cybersecurity. Using an Address Verification Service AVS can help businesses ensure their addresses’ accuracy. Additionally, it can play a significant role in various industries, such as eCommerce, banking, insurance, finance, healthcare, and education.
It is a cost-effective, reliable, and fast way to verify customer address information. Here’s why it is a big deal for businesses in Canada;
Preventing Fraud in Canada
Cybercriminals are constantly operating scams and frauds in the digital economy. Using Address Verification Service Canada helps businesses to avoid fraudulent transactions. They can verify that the customers’ addresses match the billing addresses on records.
Scams and fraud can lead to significant financial losses and even damage the reputation of a business. Thus, an Address Verification Service API can help you mitigate these risks.
Improvement in Customer Experience
Canada is the second largest country in the world. It covers a vast area of 9.985 million km². Thus, accurate addresses are essential to avoid sending mail or packages to the wrong address.
Even a slight mistake in the address can lead to a catastrophic increase in transit costs. Using an address verification service helps improve delivery times and reduces the chances of costly re-sending of mail.
A smart AVS like PostGrid Address Verification API can help businesses to personalize their marketing efforts. It provides accurate location information to improve customer satisfaction and engagement.
Also Read: Safest Way to Send a Cheque Through the Mail
Compliance with Canadian Regulations
Businesses must maintain accurate records of their customer’s personal information to follow Canadian regulations. You can avoid this headache by using an Address Verification Service. It would help you collect and store address information with the highest accuracy.
The service would ensure the data is up-to-date, accurate, and complies with privacy laws and regulations. Businesses without accurate information often face legal trouble or even hefty fines.
Reduction in Chargeback
Chargebacks are expensive for businesses in Canada. They take place when a customer raises a dispute with their card issuer. Effective use of address verification services can reduce chargebacks by verifying that the customer’s address is accurate. It reduces the likelihood that a customer will dispute a transaction.
Canadian Banking Sector Using Address Verification Services
The Canadian government makes it mandatory for banks to use Address Verification Services (AVS). They must have a robust address verification mechanism for payment processing and fraud prevention efforts.
An Address Validation API helps banks to verify the accuracy of a customer’s address by comparing it with the address on records with the card issuer. It reduces the chances of fraudulent transactions and chargebacks.
Canadian banks must follow the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI, DSS). It makes it mandatory for businesses to protect consumer data. These measures also help banks deliver their products to the correct addresses.
How Does an Address Verification Service AVS Work?
It is the standard step-by-step process;
- A customer first enters their address during a transaction.
- The merchant has to send the transaction data with the customer’s billing address to the payment processor.
- The payment processor then sends the details to the card issuer. It could be a bank or a credit card company.
- The card issuer has to compare the address to the address on record for that customer account.
- The issuer then generates a response code to show whether the address matches. This response code usually verifies a street address, postal code, or both.
- The card issuer returns this response to the payment processor, which returns it to the merchant.
- The merchant can decide whether to accept or reject the transaction. This decision depends on the response code and risk tolerance.
Meaning of Different AVS Response Codes
When a merchant uses an Address Verification Service to check a transaction, the service automatically provides a response code to signify the match of customers’ addresses. Your response AVS code could be anything from a complete match to a partial match to no match. And depending on that information, the merchant can decide to approve the transaction.
Common AVS Response Codes:
| Code | Visa | Mastercard | Discover | American Express |
| Y | Address & 5-digit or 9-digit ZIP match | Address & 5-digit ZIP match | Address only matches | Address & ZIP match |
| A | Address matches, ZIP does not | Address matches, ZIP does not | Address & 5-digit ZIP match | Address only matches |
| R | System unavailable, retry | System unavailable, retry | Not applicable | System unavailable, retry |
| U | Information not available | Information not available | System unavailable, retry | Information not available |
| Z | Either 5-digit or 9-digit ZIP match, address does not | 5-digit ZIP matches, the address does not | 5-digit ZIP matches, the address does not | ZIP code only matches |
| N | Neither ZIP nor address match | Neither ZIP nor address match | Neither ZIP nor address match | Neither ZIP nor address match |
Understanding an Address Verification Service Decline:
An AVS decline occurs when the address verification process fails to verify the address. The merchant or processor can decline such transactions without address verification.
Yet, there could be instances where legit customers are facing a false positive. Online buyers hate having their legit transactions rejected. It is also known as the ‘Customer insult rate.’ Businesses have to balance this rate to keep their customer base safe.
Also Read: Fuzzy Address Searching
Get Accurate Results with PostGrid Address Verification API
Are you seeking a reliable Address Verification Service?
Do you want to improve your verification and mail delivery process? Then, PostGrid Address Verification API could be the perfect solution. Our platforms help you to autocomplete, verify, confirm, and standardize addresses.
It helps you to avoid fraud, improve deliverability, and eliminate return mail. You can also verify addresses from over 245 countries and regions besides Canadian addresses.
Here’s why you should consider our Address Verification Service:
Certification from Canada Post and USPS: Our address verification service API has certifications for SERP (Canada Post) and CASS (USPS).
It is a Scalable RESTful API: Use our library to access live keys for easy implementation. The service can scale according to your needs.
Smooth Integration: You can easily integrate our address verification service with your existing software. The zero-code integration allows smooth integration with CRMs, tech stacks, and over 1600 tools.
Real-Time Address Verification: You can rely on our Address Verification Service to verify addresses in real-time. It would help you to avoid inaccuracies in your database.
Full Compliance: Our Address Verification Service complies with Canadian legal regulations. PostGrid and its partners have PIPEDA, HIPAA, GDPR & SOC-2 certifications.
Bulk Verification of Address Data: With our Address Verification Service, you can upload and verify up to 200K addresses simultaneously.
Signup now to access our Address Verification Service API
