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Course Not-as-Described Chargebacks: Compare the Offer With What Was Delivered
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TL;DR:
- Save the offer and course version tied to the sale, including limits and sales messages.
- Place each disputed promise beside proof of what you supplied. Show gaps and conflicting facts.
- Lesson completion does not prove that a live workshop or feedback was delivered.
- Keep replacement offers, student acceptance and completed remedies separate.
- Use the actual case route and due date, and save proof of submission.
To answer course not-as-described chargebacks, compare what the student bought with what you supplied. Save the original offer and address the specific gap they claim. A login or completion flag does not prove that you delivered every promised service.
Check the Promise Against Actual Delivery
Use the versioned worksheet and worked case below. The online course pillar covers the wider proof framework. Here, focus on one question: did the course or service match the offer this student bought?
Identify the Specific Course Not-as-Described Allegation
Read the student's claim and attachments. Note the charge, course version or cohort, amount and due date. Write the claimed gap in one neutral sentence.
The claim may concern a missing workshop, less feedback, an absent resource or a shorter access period. It may concern the course level. Do not reduce all these issues to “the student did not like it.” Check the actual promise.
Route failed access, an unpaid refund or a payer-consent claim to the right review. A case can raise several issues. Each needs its own proof. A course certificate cannot answer them all.
Preserve the Offer as It Appeared at Purchase
Save the sales page, checkout, syllabus, receipt and relevant sales messages tied to the order. Keep limits and conditions with the promise. Today's page may differ from the one the student saw.
Note each source's date or version and link it to the sale. Check which offer applied when the student bought. If a salesperson added a promise, save the message. The website may not contain the full offer.
Keep real guarantees and their conditions. Do not turn a broad benefit into a promise of results. Do not omit an explicit guarantee because it makes your response harder. Review the full offer.
Preserve the Promise Through Each Version
Purchase-Time Offer
Save the promise, its limits and its link to the order.
Delivery Version
Check which lessons and services were available during the paid period.
Later Change
Record the change, notice and student's actual reply.
Remedy
Track what you offered, what they accepted and what you completed.
Your working timeline. Keep later edits apart from the original offer.
Build a Promise-Versus-Delivery Comparison
Place each disputed promise beside its delivery record. Show gaps and conflicting facts. If the claim concerns one workshop, you may not need to compare the whole catalog.
| Promise under review | Purchase-time source | Delivery record | Finding to verify |
|---|---|---|---|
| Live teaching | Offer, cohort schedule and relevant qualification | Session occurrence, access and attendance | Did the promised format and session actually occur? |
| Curriculum content | Purchased syllabus and course version | Released modules and relevant availability history | Was the advertised topic or level included as represented? |
| Individual feedback | Scope, quantity and timing commitment | Submission, completed feedback and delivery | Was the promised feedback supplied? |
| Access period | Purchase terms and start/end conditions | Entitlement and actual access history | Did access match the purchased period? |
| Resource or credential | Description and eligibility conditions | Actual resource availability or issued credential | Was the specific representation met? |
| Changed component | Original promise, notice and response | Accepted alternative and actual delivery | Was the change merely offered or actually agreed and supplied? |
This is your working sheet. It does not decide whether a change meets a card network's test. Use it to review the sale and the claim. Leave missing records blank rather than inventing facts.
Thinkific's Payments chargeback guidance lists descriptions and student activity as possible proof. The offer shows a promise; a log can show use. Neither record answers every delivery question.
Course Not-as-Described Chargebacks Need More Than Completion
Check what a completion flag means. It may come from a student click, system rule or staff update. Match it to the paid course and period. A certificate alone does not prove that you supplied the full offer.
A student can finish every recorded lesson while a promised live event never takes place. A student may also choose not to open a resource you supplied. Check availability and delivery before you interpret use.
Keep proof of payer consent separate from proof of course use. Someone using a course does not by itself prove that the rightful cardholder approved the charge. Preserve the link between payer, student and payment.
Worked Case: Recorded Lessons Replaced a Promised Live Workshop
Hypothetical example: A $750 course includes recorded lessons, one live workshop and project feedback. The student finishes the lessons. You cancel the workshop and offer a recording. The student disputes the payment, saying the live event was a key part of the sale.
Hypothetical $750 Course: Completion Does Not Answer the Missing Workshop
Purchased
Recorded lessons, one live workshop and project feedback.
Verified Activity
The student finished the recorded lessons.
Changed Delivery
You canceled the workshop and offered a recording.
Question to Investigate
What did you promise? Did they accept the change? What remedy completed?
Hypothetical case. No price per part, refund right or bank result is assumed.
Lesson completion does not prove that the workshop took place. Save the offer, cancellation notice, replacement offer and student's reply. Keep any relevant sale conditions. A new recorded-only sales page does not show what you first promised.
Check whether the student accepted the recording and what remedy you offered or completed. A sent email does not prove consent. Uploading a recording does not prove that you supplied the promised live service.
Do not invent a workshop price if the original sale did not set one. Review a remedy under the real terms and your duties. Keep any later proposal apart from the original price split.
Alternative Case: The Promised Module Was Available but Hard to Find
Hypothetical example: A student says an advanced module was missing. Your records show it was available during the paid period. Support messages reveal a naming gap: the menu label differed from the sales-page name.
Show where the promised topic sits in that course version and when it was available. Explain the naming gap. Do not claim that the student used the module unless records support that fact.
If you added the module after the complaint, show the real date. A later fix may resolve a problem, but it does not prove full delivery at the start. Do not backdate content or use today's syllabus as the old one.
Keep the Change History and Customer Response
Note what changed, when, why and which cohorts or bookings it affected. Save the notice and reply. Distinguish acceptance, rejection and no response. A staff schedule edit does not prove that the student agreed.
For coaching, use the session and milestone guide. A new booking does not prove that a session took place. An assignment sent by the student does not prove that you sent feedback.
Use the installment guide to find the exact charge in a payment plan. A complaint about the whole program may name one paid installment. Keep that payment clear in your records.
Document the Remedy Without Overstating It
Track the request, your decision, offer, any acceptance and actual completion. An offered workshop is not a delivered workshop. A service credit is not a card refund. Refund approval is not proof of payment.
Kajabi’s response guidance lists incomplete service and unpaid owed refunds as reasons to accept a case in Kajabi Payments. Check the facts and your actual provider's process before deciding to contest.
If you confirm a missing promised service, use the proper remedy route. If records show that you supplied it as sold, build the reply around them. Stay factual. Do not guess at the student's motives.
Assemble a Focused Comparison Packet
Start with the charge, course version, claimed gap and finding. Number the exhibits: original promise, delivery record, changes, messages and completed remedy. Keep the disputed promise beside your answer. Do not bury it in a large syllabus.
Keep the source records intact. Mark added notes as your own. A later review can explain what you found, but it is not an original sales or service record. Keep the date and version for each exhibit.
Make Each Exhibit Answer One Question
Promise Exhibit
What did the student buy, and which version applied?
Delivery Exhibit
Which record shows that you supplied it?
Change Exhibit
What changed, and did the student accept or reject it?
Remedy Exhibit
Which service or refund completed? Include its reference.
Your comparison framework. Keep gaps and conflicting facts visible.
Use the course-platform responsibility guide to find the submission route. Check the live due date and file rules. Save proof of submission. An internal draft or support reply does not count as a formal case response.
Improve the Course Offer and Delivery Controls
Check that sales and course teams use the same saved offer. Look for missing feedback, unclear release dates and stale workshop details. Fix the handoff that caused the gap. Broad checkout terms cannot replace that work.
Track how often you saved the original offer and verified delivery. Log missing services and completed remedies apart from case wins. A high response rate does not prove that you met every promise.
Chargeflow's no-refund policy guide explains policy limits. Its digital-goods guide links payment, access rights and use. Use this page for the closer comparison between the offer and delivery.
Evaluate Automation with a Versioned Case
Bring an anonymized case with the offer, course version, charge and disputed service. Check which records you can retrieve. Name an owner for the rest. A payment connection may not reveal an old syllabus or instructor feedback.
Use Chargeflow Automation to assess supported evidence and response workflows. Confirm your processor, course records and fit with the team before you expand the process.
Veelgestelde vragen
What Is a Course Not-as-Described Chargeback?
It is a claim that the course or service differed from the offer. Identify the exact promise and compare it with delivery. Save the offer version, relevant messages and remedies. General login records cannot answer every claimed gap.
Does Course Completion Defeat a Not-as-Described Complaint?
No. A student can finish available lessons while a promised workshop or feedback item remains missing. Check what completion means. Compare the disputed promise with its own delivery record and any change the student accepted.
Which Version of the Course Sales Page Should Be Used as Evidence?
Use the version tied to the sale. Keep its limits and relevant sales messages. Save later changes apart so the timeline stays clear. Today's edited page cannot prove an earlier offer if the terms changed.
Does Offering a Replacement Recording Prove a Live Workshop Was Delivered?
No. A recording does not prove that a live event took place or that the student agreed to the swap. Save the promise, cancellation, new offer and reply. Check what remedy actually completed.
What If the Merchant Confirms a Promised Course Component Was Missing?
Keep the finding and use the proper service or payment remedy. Track offers, approvals and completed actions apart. Check any open case before sending more money. Do not invent prices for missing parts or hide the gap.
Sources checked: November 3, 2026. Worksheets are editorial tools. Case IDs, amounts and timelines are hypothetical. They do not show customer results or forecast recovery. Check current provider and case rules before you submit.
Connect Your Evidence to Chargeback Recovery
Review your payment stack, evidence sources and recovery workflow with Chargeflow.
Chargebacks?
Dat is niet langer jouw probleem.
Haal 4x meer chargebacks terug en voorkom tot 90% van de inkomende betalingen, dankzij AI en een wereldwijd netwerk van 20.000 handelaren.
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