Introduction to Card Payment Dispute Resolution & Chargebacks

When all goes well, card transactions are a benefit to all the different players of the payment transaction:

• the cardholder has a safe, secure, easy method to make transactions;
• the merchant has increased sales volumes by accepting card payments and less risk and costs of dealing with cash;
• the issuer provides the cardholder with a product and service that meets the cardholder’s needs;
• the acquirer provides the merchant with the connection to the network charging the merchant with a merchant discount fee to cover the acquirer’s processing costs;
• the schemes provide the rails to ensure the transactions run smoothly and safely.

Transactions are automated, cardholder’s are often debited with direct debit and the transaction cycle works smoothly ensuring that the cardholder is able to make payments within seconds and the merchant is credited as quickly as possible. For less than 1%, in fact, 0,02% in Europe (0,06% globally), there is a problem with the transaction and the issuer attempts to recover the transaction amount by using a chargeback.

As automated as it is, chargebacks are still a time consuming and costly manual process. Banks and processors require back-office staff to handle disputes either on the issuing or acquiring side. Some merchants prefer to accept the chargeback rather than try and defend the transaction for lack of time and resources.

Throughout this course, our main objectives are to:

• understand the Chargeback Process: we will learn about the chargeback process flow, the key parties involved, and the stages a chargeback goes through before resolution;
• identify Common Reasons for Chargebacks: discover the various reasons why chargebacks occur, including unauthorized transactions, merchant errors, and cases of fraud;
• master Chargeback Regulations: gain insight into the regulatory framework surrounding chargebacks, including guidelines set by card networks such as Visa and Mastercard;
• chargeback Prevention Strategies: learn effective strategies for preventing chargebacks, minimizing disputes, and maintaining healthy merchant-consumer relationships;
• handling Chargebacks Effectively: explore the best practices for managing and responding to chargebacks to increase the likelihood of successful resolutions.

After the training, participants will:

• understand the logic of chargebacks;
• understand the responsibilities of the different players in the payment system;
• improve their efficiency in handling disputes as they will know what to do rather than spend hours looking for the correct solution in the scheme rulebooks.