Troubleshooting
Symptom, cause, and fix for every common issue. Start here if something isn't working.
If something isn’t working as expected, skim this table first. Most issues are one of five things, and the fix is usually a single setting.
Common issues
| Symptom | Likely cause | Fix |
|---|---|---|
| Autocomplete dropdown doesn’t appear on checkout | Google API key isn’t entered, is wrong, or billing isn’t enabled on the Google project | Go to Settings → SA Address Autocomplete for WooCommerce. Click Test API Key. If the result is red, follow the specific message. If no key is saved, follow the Google Places API Key guide. |
| Test API Key says “Places API (New) required” | Your key has the legacy Places API enabled, not the new one | In Google Cloud Console → APIs & Services → Library, search for Places API (New) and click Enable. The older “Places API” service on its own will not work. |
| Test API Key says key is restricted to the wrong referrer | Your HTTP referrer restrictions don’t include your current domain | In Google Cloud Console → APIs & Services → Credentials, click your key. Under Website restrictions, add both https://yourshop.co.za/* and https://www.yourshop.co.za/*. Wait up to a minute after saving. |
| Test API Key succeeds but autocomplete still doesn’t show on checkout | Browser cache, or a caching plugin serving an old page | Hard-refresh the checkout page (Ctrl+Shift+R on Windows / Cmd+Shift+R on Mac). If you use a caching plugin, clear its cache. |
| Customer selects an address in an informal settlement or rural area, the Suburb field is blank after selection | Google doesn’t have a reliable “suburb” field for that area | The plugin tries three sources in order, sublocality, sublocality level 1, locality, and fills the first one that exists. Some rural addresses simply don’t have any of these. The customer can type the suburb manually; the Suburb-required check still enforces they enter one. |
| Customer gets “no shipping options available” even after picking from Google | Your shipping rules match on exact suburb spelling, and Google’s spelling differs from yours | Check your shipping rules against the exact suburb Google returns. Most common mismatch is accented characters or hyphens (e.g. “Khayelitsha” vs “Khayalitsha”). Update your rules to match Google’s spelling. |
| Red “Your license has expired, renew to continue receiving updates” banner appears at the top of every wp-admin screen | Your license reached its annual renewal date | Renew from your KasiCode account at kasicode.com/account/licenses/. Your plugin keeps working, only update delivery is gated on an active license. |
| Yellow “Google Places API key is missing” banner | You’ve activated the plugin but haven’t entered a Google API key yet | Go to Settings → SA Address Autocomplete for WooCommerce and paste your key into the Google Places API Key field. Save. |
| Autocomplete works on classic checkout but the Suburb-required check doesn’t block submission on block checkout | The customer has JavaScript disabled in their browser | Block checkout validation runs in the browser, without JavaScript it can’t run. This affects less than 1% of shoppers in practice. Classic checkout is unaffected because it uses server-side validation. |
| Plugin stopped working after a WordPress or WooCommerce update | Compatibility issue with a newer release | Check the Changelog for a recent update. If you’re running the latest plugin version and still seeing issues, email support@kasicode.com with your WordPress and WooCommerce version numbers. |
| I uninstalled the plugin and now I can’t find my license details | Uninstalling clears all plugin settings, including the license activation | Reinstall the plugin, then re-enter your license email and key from your KasiCode account. The license is still valid, the site was deactivated on uninstall, so it’s free to reactivate. |
Checking the browser console
If you’re still stuck, the browser’s developer console often shows a clear error message. Open it on your checkout page:
- Chrome or Edge: Right-click the page → Inspect → Console tab
- Firefox: Right-click → Inspect → Console
- Safari: Enable the Develop menu in Preferences, then Develop → Show JavaScript Console
Look for any red messages mentioning “places”, “google”, or “maps”. If you see a message like “The provided API key is expired, or is not authorised to use the Places API service”, that’s your answer, fix the key restrictions or enable the right API.
Still stuck?
Email support@kasicode.com with:
- Your shop’s URL
- Your WordPress and WooCommerce version numbers (find these at Dashboard → Updates)
- The plugin version you’re on (find this on your Plugins list)
- The exact error message, including anything from the browser console
- A screenshot of the settings page (hide the API key if you like, we don’t need the full value)
We read every message and reply as soon as we can.