Introduction to Disputes

• What is the dispute process?

  A Cardholder can initiate a dispute by calling their Bank. The Issuing bank will forward the dispute to the Card Brand(MasterCard, Visa, Discover or Amex) who in turn will send it to the Acquirer that processed the transaction. The Acquirer will check the validity of this dispute and forward it to the merchant that processed the transaction. If the merchant challenges the dispute by submitting supporting documents, the Acquirer will then send it back to the Card Brands who will pass it on to the Issuing bank. If the Issuing bank accepts the documents, the merchant is credited (if previously debited) and the dispute process is closed. However the Issuing bank can continue the process  using other dispute stages like Arbitrations. If the merchant does not respond to the initial chargeback or decides to Accept Liability, the merchant is debited and the dispute process is completed. There is no financial impact for Retrieval Requests, but it follows the same process as a Chargeback.

  A Dispute Case can be created when there is a question or disagreement about one of your payment card transactions - for example, if a cardholder does not recognize an item listed on their credit card bill, or if a cardholder does not agree with an amount that was charged to their card.
  
  A Dispute Case will involve some or all of the following parties:

  Cardholder	A customer using a payment card to purchase goods or services.
  Issuing Bank	The bank that issued the card to the cardholder. Also known as "Card Scheme" or "Scheme"
  Card Association	Visa, MasterCard, AMEX, Discover, and so on. Also known as "Issuer" or "Bank".
  Acquirer	The institution that processes card payments on behalf of the merchant. For example, Global Payments. Also known as "Acquiring Bank."
  Merchant	The organization accepting payments by payment card, in exchange for goods or services.

  

  Dispute Cases contain information such as transaction data; supporting documents from the various parties; correspondence sent to the merchant or issuing bank; and case data, such as records of the decisions that were taken to resolve the disputes.

• What are the different types of dispute cases?

  The following chart lists all types of Dispute Cases. The check marks indicate which case types you can take action on through the Dispute Management System. The remaining case types can only be viewed from the Portal.

   

  Incoming cases are cases that are initiated by cardholders or issuing banks. Outgoing cases are cases that are initiated by merchants or by Global Payments on behalf of merchants.

  
  

  A Retrieval Request is a request for proof that a transaction was valid. To respond to a Retrieval Request you might, for example, provide a copy of the sales draft for the transaction. No financial adjustments are performed for Retrieval Request cases, but if you do not respond successfully, you could be held responsible (liable) for any Chargeback cases that result. Retrieval Requests are sometimes referred to as “Retrievals.”

  
  

  A Chargeback case is created when the cardholder or issuing bank is disputing a transaction. As soon as a Chargeback case is initiated, the disputed funds are usually transferred from the merchant’s account to the issuing bank. You can respond to a Chargeback by either (a) acknowledging the Chargeback and accepting liability, or (b) rebutting the Chargeback by defending the transaction with supporting documentation.

  
  

  An Incoming PreArbitration can be created when a case is not resolved at the Chargeback. stage. For this case type, the issuing bank and Global Payments attempt to resolve the dispute and avoid arbitration. Arbitration, when necessary, is performed by the card associations.

  
  

  An Incoming PreCompliance is a type of case that is based on a violation of the rules that are defined by the relevant card association.

  
  

  An Incoming Good Faith Collection is a request for you to accept liability for a case on a good faith basis, even though the final deadline for resolving the case has passed. Acceptance of an Incoming Good Faith Collection case is completely at your discretion.

  
  

  The general term Exception Case includes both the Incoming and Outgoing versions of the following case types: PreArbitration, Arbitration, PreCompliance, Compliance, and Good Faith Collection.

  
  

  Dispute Cases are usually referred to simply as “cases” within the Portal and within this document.

  
  

  
  

• What is a retrieval?

  A Retrieval Request is a request for proof that a transaction was valid. To respond to a Retrieval Request you might, for example, provide a copy of the sales draft for the transaction. No financial adjustments are performed for Retrieval Request cases, but if you do not respond successfully, you could be held responsible (liable) for any Chargeback cases that result. Retrieval Requests are sometimes referred to as “Retrievals.”

  
  

• What do all the reason codes stand for? Are they important?

  A reason code is an alphanumeric code assigned by the card scheme to provide additional information about the case. The reason code is important because it provides a more specific description of why the chargeback occurred. It also guides you on what type of documentation to use when submitting a challenge.

  View Reason Codes

• What are the possible reasons you have debited my account in relation to disputes?

  There are several reasons you may have been debited:

  1. There is an incoming Dispute

  2. You accepted liability for a previous Retrieval

  3. You have been debited monthly or daily fees