I believe that our members donating when they join is a spontaneous decision. Only the base amount should be renewed automatically. Additional donations can be made in the second phase.

And it affects folks that are the least "tech savvy." They already don't trust online payment platforms. It's so important that this be remedied.

I absolutely agree - when "auto-renewal" is selected and an optional donation has been added, the form should not automatically assume that the donation is to be included at each renewal.

We've encountered several instances recently where users purchased memberships, selected the annual auto-renewal, and also opted to make an additional donation. When the membership was auto-renewed, from their perspective, the optional donation was included as part of the renewal. We refunded the extra amount in some cases, but some individual cancelled their membership with us outright. In all cases, they were upset with our organization for apparently trying to snatch extra money.

I agree that including the option to choose whether the donation should be included as part of the annual renewal makes sense. All it needs is a checkbox below the optional donation field, labelled "Include this donation with every auto-renewal". Only enable the checkbox when the user has selected auto-renewal and make it unchecked by default (because charging it only once is the "safe" option while, as described above, automatically including has had real, negative consequences).

From reading the other comments, it appears that specifying a Zeffy donation value is also automatically included in the renewal. I would still suggest there should be a similar checkbox here, but due to the importance of these donations to Zeffy's operating costs, it is reasonable for this one to be checked by default, as long as the label includes a clear explanation that allowing it ensures payment system fees will be covered for each annual transaction.

I suggest a check box on each donation, to allow the donor to choose whether they want to make a spontaneous or recurring donation to each organization (Zeffy and the owner of the form).

This way, the donor will be aware that there is a recurring process or option, and will have the opportunity to make a conscious choice.

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I suggest a checkbox on each donation, to let the donor choose if they want to do a spontaneous or a recurring donation to each organism (Zeffy and form owners).

Like this, the donor would notice there is a recurring process or the option thereof, and be allowed to make a conscious choice.

While I agree that it should be optional, it should still be available. When you run a credit card on autorenewal, the same merchant fees apply every time. Only paying for the first cycle doesn't generate sufficient money for Zeffy.

I like the new slidebar. It shows the total amount to be paid each cycle. So if the person wants to pay less each cycle because it's recurring, they can see the exactly amount they'll pay each time.

Yes, it brakes trust

I agree. Very bad to simply take another donation from a donor who may or may not want to give it. No organization "takes" money, they ask. We are a small organization. Last year one generous donor gave $500. This year it was taken automatically as part of the membership renewal. REALLY???