Overview
The purpose of this article is to provide Boulevard customers with general information about disputes and how merchants can respond to them in a timely manner.
What is a Chargeback?
Chargeback fees are assessed when a cardholder disputes a transaction and are paid to the card's issuing bank. The fee applies regardless of whether the merchant or the cardholder wins the dispute. Depending on the card brand (Visa, Mastercard, Discover, and American Express), the consumer typically has 120 days to issue a dispute from the time of purchase.
Examples of Common Chargeback Reason Codes
Merchandise/Services Not Received.
Goods/Services Not as Described.
Canceled Merchandise/Services.
Canceled Recurring Transaction.
Duplicate Billing.
Other Fraud - Card Absent Environment.
You can learn more about how to address common dispute reasons here.
Best Practices for Merchants - Rebuttals
Contact Your Client First. If you are surprised by a dispute, we recommend you first call your client to learn why they issued a dispute and see if you can come to an amicable resolution that results in their calling the (800) number on the back of the card to drop it with their Issuing Bank.
Respond to the Dispute. It is important to reply to the dispute, whether you will be issuing a rebuttal, accepting the dispute, and/or even if your client will be reversing the dispute with their Bank.
Address the Reason Code. Your response is being sent directly to your clients Issuing Bank for review, as they are the decision makers on who to award the dispute to. They are reviewing to learn from you why the reason code given is inaccurate or incorrect. You want to give them facts and details from your side.
More is Better. We recommend starting first with drafting a Response/Rebuttal Letter on a Word document (convert to a .PDF file after) that allows you enough space to write out your response and also upload any images within the document that support your case such as Before & After pictures, copy of a Driver’s License (when applicable), Text Message Correspondence, Social Media Interactions etc. Additionally, attach any signed documents such as a Cancellation Policy, Membership Policy, Procedure Consultation, and/or a Receipt to assist with your case and gaining a favorable review from the Issuing Bank.
Rebuttal Letter Example
“Dear Card Issuing Representative,
The dispute reason of ‘Merchandise/Services Not Received’ is inaccurate as the services were performed on March 1st at 9:00AM and the cardholder signed our Intake Form (please see attached) that we disclosed to them and that they are required to acknowledge and sign before services can be performed.
Additionally, the cardholder is a repeat client of ours, and below is an image of their purchase history, their billing details, and their contact information. The Services Were Received.
Please find their signed form attached as well as a receipt with your authorization code on the bottom.”
Sincerely,
{Insert Name}
{Insert Business}
{Insert Phone}
{Insert Email}
For more information on how to craft a rebuttal letter, check out this article.
Chargeback Lifecycle
Once a dispute is issued by the consumer's card issuing bank and the merchant responds with information to rebut evidence, the process can take anywhere from 60-90 days to resolve. Please note that there are no guarantees a merchant will win the dispute yet effort should be made by the merchant to resolve it in a timely manner.
In some cases, a dispute may go through a “pre-chargeback” phase first. In this situation, the cardholder has disputed the transaction, but the issuing bank has not yet stepped in to make a determination, and a chargeback fee has not yet been assessed. You will see “pre-chargeback” as the status.
During this phase, you can submit individual evidence files, including a response letter, receipts, etc. Once you submit each item, you will not be able to edit or remove it, but you can always submit more items later. These items will be shared with the issuing bank, at which point they will either progress the dispute to a full chargeback or close it as invalid.
If a dispute progresses to a full chargeback, the funds from the transaction will be deducted from your account, and you will be charged a chargeback fee as defined in your merchant agreement (this fee is paid to the cardholder’s bank and not Boulevard). Alternatively, if the dispute is closed at this stage, then no chargeback fee is assessed, and the funds will remain in your account.
While Boulevard has no position, influence, or decision-making authority on dispute outcomes, we are here to help you in any way that we can. For any questions about Disputes, our team can be reached at paymentservices@blvd.co