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Clocks in Ohio went back an hour at 2:00 a.m. on Sunday. Your phone took care of itself. Your card terminal might not have.
Nothing is broken, and you can keep taking payments. But every sale gets stamped with the terminal's own clock, and if that clock is still on the old time, it's worth two minutes to fix. This post covers which terminals need it. The steps for each one live in our guides, linked below.
Which card terminals reset themselves after the time change
Some terminals pull the correct time from the internet and adjust on their own. Clover, Exatouch and Valor PayTech do that, so there's nothing to do.
First Data, Dejavoo, PAX and Verifone terminals keep their own time. They'll sit an hour ahead until somebody enters the new date and time by hand.
If you're not sure what you have, the brand is usually on the front of the terminal or at the top of a printed receipt. If it's still a mystery, call or text us at 1-855-297-6722 and we'll tell you in about a minute.
What an hour of drift does to your reports
A terminal that's an hour fast doesn't decline cards or lose money. It makes your records a little wrong, and that adds up.
A sale at 11:30 p.m. shows up as 12:30 a.m. the next day. If you run a bar or a kitchen that stays open late, some of Friday's sales land in Saturday's report. Receipts print the wrong time, which is a headache when you're matching one to a shift schedule or a security camera. And if your terminal closes its batch at a set hour, that close now happens an hour off from the one you picked.
None of that is a crisis. It's just easier to fix this week than to untangle later.
How to reset First Data, Dejavoo, PAX and Verifone terminals
We wrote a screen-by-screen guide for each brand, with a picture of what you should see at every step. They're in our Resources section, under the equipment:
- First Data terminal guide
- Dejavoo terminal guide (two versions, depending on your model)
- PAX terminal guide
- Verifone terminal guide
The overview page links to all four and lists what to have in hand before you start. Keep it handy, because the clocks change again in the spring.
Quick answers
Do I need to change the time on a Clover terminal? No. Clover sets its own clock. If one shows the wrong time anyway, call us.
What time do I enter? The current Eastern time, read off your phone, on a 24-hour clock. So 2:50 p.m. is 14:50:00.
Do I need a password? Dejavoo and Verifone terminals ask for one, and the guides give the standard one for each. If it doesn't work, someone changed it, and we can help you get in.
When do the clocks change again? Sunday, March 14, 2027, when they move forward an hour. Same steps.
What if my screens don't match the guide? Stop and call us. Menus differ a little by model and software version, and we'd rather talk you through it than have you guess.
If you'd rather not do it alone
We're in Chagrin Falls, and we'll talk you through a clock reset by phone or text while you stand at the counter. Spanish and Arabic language services are available. Call or text 1-855-297-6722, or send a note through our contact form.
Sources
- Time Change instructions, Electronic Payments. The list of terminals that update automatically and the terminal menu paths.
Terminal menus differ by model and software version. First Data, Dejavoo, PAX, Verifone, Clover and Valor PayTech are trademarks of their respective owners, and Cloud 9 Payments is not affiliated with them.
