Managing Payouts

Drawing a winner is half the job. Getting them their prize fast, on the record, and without disputes is the other half. The Payouts dashboard is where you track every unfulfilled win from “winner picked” through “customer happy”.

Where to find it

Raffle admin → Payouts. The default view shows every winners row with payout_status != paid — the work queue. Filter by competition, prize type, or time window using the filters at the top.

Payout statuses

• Pending.Default. Winner has been picked but you haven’t actioned the payout yet.
• Dispatched.Physical prize is in the post (or courier). You’ve added a tracking reference.
• Paid. Cash prize transferred, or credit prize credited, or physical prize delivered. The work is done.
• Disputed. Customer raised a dispute (wrong item, damage, not received). Sits in this state until resolved, then either flips back to dispatched/paid or to refused.
• Refused.Winner didn’t respond within the grace period, or refused the prize. They forfeit; you can re-draw.

Workflow by prize type

Cash prize

1. Open the winner row. Click Request bank details — sends a templated email to the winner asking for sort code + account number (we never store these long-term; they live in your inbox).
2. Once you receive the details, transfer from your business bank account. Add the transfer reference + amount to the payout notes.
3. Mark payout_status = paid. The timestamp lands in paid_out_at.

Physical prize

1. Open the winner row. The winner’s shipping address is pulled from their profile.
2. Post or courier the prize. Get a tracking number.
3. In the admin, paste the tracking number into Tracking reference and flip payout_status = dispatched. The customer receives a templated email with the tracking link.
4. When delivered, flip to paid. Optional but recommended — gives you a clean audit trail.

Credit prize

1. For instant-win credit, the system has already added it to the customer’s wallet (credit_transactions) at win time. The winner row exists for the audit trail.
2. Just flip payout_status = paid and add a note like “auto-credited at win”.

Free-entry prize

1. Auto-applied at win time. Confirm the free entry ticket exists in the customer’s account.
2. Flip to paid.

CSV export

Top-right of the Payouts page: Export CSV. Exports the currently-filtered list with columns: winner name, email, competition, prize, status, tracking ref, paid date. Useful for accounting reconciliation, shipping handoff to a fulfilment partner, or weekly ops reviews.

Common mistakes

• Leaving prizes in ‘Pending’. Sit for too long and you get complaints. Set a weekly slot to clear the queue.
• Asking for bank details over insecure channels. The email template we send goes from your domain over HTTPS, so replies come back to you securely. Don’t collect them via a public form on social media.
• Forgetting to upload the tracking reference. Without it, the “dispatched” email goes out with a blank link — customers panic. The form blocks blank submissions, but make sure to come back and fill it in if you held off.

Related: Customer Wallet Withdrawals.