chargebacks 101

A chargeback is a reversal of a card payment initiated through the cardholder’s bank after a dispute. Explore merchant guides to understand the process, prevent disputes, prepare evidence and choose the right payment-provider workflow.

Choose your chargeback learning path

Start with the merchant task you need to complete. Explore the basics, investigate and prevent disputes, or choose your payment-provider guide.

Foundations and rules

Understand chargeback stages, credit and debit cards, dispute roles, and the rules that guide a merchant response.

6 specialist guides →

Billing disputes and refunds

Investigate billing complaints, compare refunds and chargebacks, and reconcile duplicate charges, partial credits, and missing refunds.

2 specialist guides →

Evidence and escalation

Match the allegation to evidence, prepare representment, and evaluate pre-arbitration or arbitration when available.

6 specialist guides →

Prevention and monitoring

Connect prevention controls, alerts, protection eligibility, and monitoring to the causes of merchant disputes.

5 specialist guides →

Online payment fraud

Investigate ecommerce fraud, card testing, unauthorized payments, transfer scams, and suspected first-party misuse.

8 specialist guides →

In-store fraud and liability

Choose guides for card-present fraud, counterfeit cards, and EMV liability using terminal records and the actual allegation.

3 specialist guides →

Payment platforms

Choose Stripe, Shopify Payments, or PayPal guides for evidence submission, case handling, and balance reconciliation.

6 specialist guides →

Wallets and BNPL

Identify the payment route for Apple Pay, Google Pay, Venmo, Affirm, or Klarna before preparing a merchant response.

7 specialist guides →

Card networks and issuers

Find American Express, Discover, and bank guides while keeping issuer and merchant-provider roles distinct.

7 specialist guides →

Chargebacks: a merchant quick reference

A chargeback is a reversal initiated through the cardholder’s bank after a card payment is disputed. The initial debit and the final decision are separate events. A merchant may be able to respond with evidence through its processor or acquirer.

What happens during a chargeback?

Notice: identify the payment, disputed amount, allegation and case stage.
Response: use the case’s displayed deadline and decide whether to accept or challenge.
Review: submit relevant evidence through the permitted channel and retain confirmation.
Decision: reconcile the outcome, recovered principal and fee entries.

Follow the complete chargeback process.

Chargeback or refund?

Question	Chargeback	Reembolso
Who starts it?	The cardholder disputes a payment through the issuer.	The merchant returns money through its payment provider.
What should the merchant check?	The allegation, response deadline and available evidence.	The original payment, existing credits and refund status.
What costs apply?	Dispute and response fees depend on the provider and market.	Processing-fee treatment depends on the provider’s terms.

Compare chargebacks, refunds and existing credits.

Which deadline should a merchant use?

Use the due date and timezone on the processor or acquirer’s case notice. A customer filing window, a network exchange period and a merchant submission cutoff serve different purposes. Check the rules and deadline sources.

What evidence should a merchant collect?

Choose records that address the actual claim: delivery for nonreceipt, the purchase-time description for a product mismatch, or payment and refund records for a billing complaint. Choose an evidence guide.

Can an alert prevent a chargeback?

An eligible pre-dispute alert can create an opportunity to resolve a complaint before a formal filing. The action window, enrollment and outcome rules depend on the alert program. Review the alert workflow.

Learn from published merchant outcomes

See the Creative Home Designs win-rate calculation and the Fanatics and Wordtune measurement examples. Each explains the reported result, its source and the limits of comparison.

Reference sources: Stripe’s card-dispute lifecycle, refund documentation and Verifi’s pre-dispute programs. Provider examples require the applicable payment route and terms. Source notes updated October 11, 2026.