Note: If you are reading this article because you are about to or recently disputed a charge from Givebacks, please understand that your PTA, nonprofit, or other organization is the actual vendor where you made a purchase, and they are just using Givebacks as their payments platform.
As part of credit card processing, a customer or payer has the ability to dispute a charge that appears on their statement.
What is a dispute?
If a payer does not recognize a charge on their statement or wants their funds back for any reason, they can contact their card issuer and "dispute" the charge. This means the payer no longer wishes to pay the charge for some reason (e.g., the event was canceled or they never received the item) or does not recognize the charge and has marked it as fraudulent. The payer contacted their bank, notified them of the issue, and, in turn, the payer's bank opened a dispute and requested that the funds be returned. Typically, the payer will see the funds returned quickly once a charge is disputed.
What to expect
1. A Dispute is Initiated
When a payer disputes a charge, Givebacks receives notification.
The payer receives their entire purchase amount back from their bank immediately or shortly after disputing the charge.
Givebacks then sends an email to your organization and the payer. The email is sent to the admin designated for "Contact Us" notifications. If no one is set up for that notification type, the email is sent to all organizational admins.
These emails notify both parties of the dispute and urge them to work together to resolve the dispute.
The funds for a dispute are removed from the organization's Stripe account once a dispute is initiated. You will notice that the disputed order is labeled as such, and that your payout is smaller than expected.
Note: Stripe assesses a $15 fee for disputed charges, which is non-refundable even if the dispute is later resolved in your favor. The fee is debited from your Stripe account and appears in your Payout report.
2. Mediation takes place
Organizations should contact the payer to understand the root cause of the dispute and attempt to resolve it.
If the organization accepts the dispute and agrees with the refund, no further action is required.
If the organization can not resolve the dispute with the payer and wants to recover the funds, it will need to prepare a counter-response. Prepare a statement, collect documentation, and send it to Givebacks support. Givebacks must submit the counter-response.
If the payer mistakenly disputes the transaction, they can cancel the dispute through their credit card company or make a new purchase. Note: Organizations should still submit a counter-response if the payer cancels the dispute.
The due dates for this documentation vary, but they are typically about 10 days after the dispute is initiated.
3. Documentation is Submitted
The best documentation to provide is email communication (discussed more below), but this documentation may also include a copy of the purchase receipt, any tracking information or notes about the item being received, or other proof from the organization that the purchase was valid.
The payer's card issuer reviews the submitted information and makes a decision.
It can take several months for a decision to be reached.
For canceled disputes, resolution typically takes up to two months, though it may conclude sooner. An estimated timeline may be provided, but users should be prepared for the process to take the full duration.
4. A Decision is made
If the payer's bank decides that your organization won the dispute, the payer will see the funds removed from their account again. The organization will also see the funds returned to your Stripe account, and they will be included in your next payout after the decision is made. Also, the order status is changed from "Disputed" back to "Purchased."
If the payer's bank decides that your organization lost the dispute and the payer should have their funds back, they will not be put back in your Stripe account.
If you work with Givebacks to file a counter-response, Givebacks will notify you of the results.
Please note: Givebacks does not control this decision, but we will do everything we can to help your organization win the dispute.
How you can help when a dispute occurs
When a dispute is filed, it's important that we hear from the payer about their perspective. The best thing you can do is help gather documentation of why the payer disputed the charge. Please contact the payer, ask why they disputed the charge, and provide the documentation to us.
If resolving the dispute isn’t feasible or desirable, consider asking the customer to purchase the item outside the dispute process to recover funds. This alternative approach depends on customer willingness and specific circumstances.
The most common reason for disputes is that the payer does not recognize the charge on their bank statement and assumes it is fraud. If you contact the payer and this is their response, the best documentation we can submit is a written note/email from the payer stating that they have contacted their card issuer and asked them to cancel the dispute because they now recognize the charge. If the issue concerns fundraiser pledges, organizing groups may be able to clarify or correct the pledged amount to resolve confusion.
Types of documentation:
Customer communication—Copies of your communication with the payer are helpful in showing your efforts to resolve the dispute.
Receipts or proof of purchase
Attendance check-in sheet
Tracking information, pickup/delivery notes or documentation
Refund policies
Other forms of proof that the transaction is valid
Questions? Click the "?" icon to contact Givebacks Support.