First failure, written like a person
From: you@yourcompany.com
Subject: Your card got declined — quick fix?
Preheader: 30 seconds to update.
Hey {{customer_name}},
Your card got declined yesterday for {{plan_name}}. Reason was: {{decline_reason}}.
Probably nothing — banks decline for all sorts of small things. If you have a sec, you can update your card here:
{{update_card_url}}
We'll otherwise auto-retry in a couple days. Thanks!
— {{company_name}}Variables to replace
- {{customer_name}}
- {{plan_name}}
- {{decline_reason}}
- {{update_card_url}}
- {{company_name}}
Why this works
Plain-text style emails outperform polished ones for B2B SaaS. Reads like a real founder noticed and reached out personally.
Want to see what this looks like on your Stripe?
See which of these templates would actually go out for your real failures — and how much you'd recover. Free 3-min audit.
Frequently asked questions
Can I use this template commercially?+
Yes — copy, paste, modify, ship. No attribution required.
What variables should I replace?+
This template uses: {{customer_name}}, {{plan_name}}, {{decline_reason}}, {{update_card_url}}, {{company_name}}. Replace each with the corresponding customer/payment data from your system.
When should I send this email?+
On retry attempt 1. Combine with smart retry timing (e.g. day 1, 3, 7) for best results.
What recovery rate should I expect from this template?+
Single emails recover modestly (~5-15%). Combined with smart retry timing, save offers, and proper sequencing, full systems lift recovery to 40-65% — vs ~30% for Stripe Smart Retries alone.
Does Rechurn use these templates?+
Yes — Rechurn ships with versions of these as defaults, AI-rewrites them per customer/failure context, and runs them through smart retry timing automatically.