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What is a Chargeback and a Chargeback Fee?

A Chargeback is when a customer disputes a transaction on their credit or debit card. They request their banking institution to petition the merchant processor to return the disputed funds. Chargebacks are meant to protect consumers from unauthorized transactions and fraudulent charges.

A chargeback may occur on both debit and credit card transactions. Chargebacks can be granted to a cardholder for any number of reasons. Here are a few common reasons:

• The customer was charged for items they never received.
• There was a duplicate charge made by mistake.
• A technical issue occurred that caused a mistaken charge.
• The cardholder’s card information was compromised and a fraudulent charge was made.

 

Why Am I Being Charged a “Chargeback Fee”?

The Chargeback Fee is a fee that the customer’s banking institution charges the merchant when the disputed funds are returned to the cardholder. Since the dispute can only be resolved by a Banking Institution Representative, fees are charged per disputed transaction to cover the cost of the bank processing the chargeback.

These chargeback fees would then be reflected on the Payout Report within the System. It is a common practice for card processors to charge a fee for each disputed and reimbursed transaction.

 

Can I Dispute a Chargeback?

If you have irrefutable proof that the claim the card holder is making is not correct you can sometimes call the banking institution to fight the chargeback. For example, if the customer signed for the card transaction in your store and the signature matches, or if you have proof that the signed package was delivered, these can generally help you regain the disputed funds.

However, getting the bank to take your side on a dispute, does NOT prevent or return any of the chargeback fees incurred by having an open dispute.

Please Note: You can use our Managed Chargeback Service to avoid handling disputes yourself. With this service, our experienced team will handle disputes and resolution of all Chargebacks you receive, and then we'll inform you about the result. For more information, take a look: Managed Chargeback Service

 

How Do I Avoid Chargebacks?

If there is a mistake on an order or the customer did not receive part of their order, it is often better to try to resolve the issue directly with the customer than to risk a chargeback and the accompanying chargeback fee. Contact the customer immediately to initiate a refund on the merchant’s end or offer in-store credit.

See also Tips for Detecting Fraud to learn some healthy business practices to avoid and prevent fraudulent charges.