Dispute Management

Information on dispute management and the chargeback process.

A Dispute generally occurs when a customer is unsatisfied or unfamiliar with a payment charged to their card and contacts their issuing bank for more information or to force a refund of the transaction. Disputes affect Merchants of all varieties and can have a major impact on their bottom line.

• All Disputes in your portfolio can be found and reviewed by visiting the Disputes page in the Portal.

• Individual Dispute details, including visible Dispute Status Tracker can be found and reviewed by visiting the Dispute Details page in the Portal.

• Disputes can also be reviewed in details or queried as a whole by calling the Chargeback API endpoints available.

Getting Started

Managing Disputes is a critical part of any Merchant business as they will arise from time to time. It’s important to understand the terms and workflows associated with transaction Disputes.

Below are some terms you’ll frequently encounter throughout the Dispute Management section

• Dispute - The action of a Cardholder challenging a transaction payment or the individual stage within the greater Chargeback process.

• Chargeback - The entirety of the process of challenging a transaction payment from Retrieval, through each Dispute stage of the Chargeback flow, and closed with a final decision as a Resolution in favor of the Merchant or Cardholder’s claim.

• Cardholder: The customer that is disputing a transaction

• Merchant: Provided the goods or services being disputed

• Issuer: The bank that issued the card to the customer (i.e. the cardholder’s bank)

• Card Brand: The card brand & network the customer’s card is associated with (Visa, Mastercard, etc.)

• Representment: The response a Merchant sends to the issuing bank when a transaction is disputed

• Arbitration: The use of a third party to arbitrate and finalize a dispute outside the platform.

Jump Ahead: If you’re already familiar with the Dispute terms within the greater Chargeback process flow and are seeking Dispute Response steps, skip ahead to the relevant guide for your preferred implementation method:

• Click here to learn how to create an imitation Chargeback Dispute for testing.

• Click here to learn how to respond to Chargeback Disputes using the API.

• Click here to learn how to respond to Chargeback Disputes using the Portal.

Next Steps

Use the guides below to learn how to manage Disputes proactively and responsively:

• Minimizing Disputes - Best practices to proactively prevent Disputes as much as possible.

• Handling Specific Dispute Types - Learn more about each platform and card brand Dispute type & code.

• Dispute Response Options - See the choices available for each individual Dispute stage and status.

  • Respond to Chargeback Disputes using the Portal - Use the Portal to respond to a Dispute.

  • Respond to Chargeback Disputes using the API - Use the API to respond to a Dispute.

• Testing Chargeback Disputes using the API - Create an imitation Chargeback Dispute for testing.

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