What is a chargeback? (Stripe Connect)

What is a chargeback?

A chargeback occurs when a buyer disputes a charge on their card with their bank. When this happens, the funds are returned to the cardholder and the amount is taken out of the host's Stripe account along with a $15 chargeback fee ($85.00 fee for orders processed in Hong Kong dollars, $25.00 fee for orders processed in Australian or New Zealand dollars). 

For event hosts paying Stripe’s standard pricing and in certain geographies, dispute fees will not be returned, regardless of the dispute outcome. For more information, please visit https://support.stripe.com/ 

Chargebacks are typically under review for about 60 days. Verdicts are decided by the card issuing bank. While fraud is the most common cause for disputes, there are a variety of other reasons why customers may question a payment.

What happens when a chargeback is lost?

If and when the dispute is resolved in your favour, the funds will be returned to your account. If the dispute is lost, unfortunately, the funds will not be returned. Unfortunately, losses can happen even when all the information is submitted. The card issuer’s decision is final and the cardholder’s payment will remain refunded. 

How do I prevent chargebacks?

Disputes are unfortunate, but a normal part of accepting payments online. The best way to prevent a buyer from disputing a charge is to ensure they recognize the charge on their credit card statement. We recommend editing the statement descriptor from your Stripe account so that it shows either your company name or the name of the event. More info on how to edit the statement descriptor can be found here.

Another way to prevent chargebacks is to ensure your event meets attendee expectations. Keep your event listing up to date using your event’s manage panel and make sure to alert attendees of any significant changes that might affect their ability to attend or enjoy your event. Messaging attendees is an easy way to keep them up to date on any changes. A step by step guide on this process can be found here.

You can also set rules on your stripe account to limit the transactions allowed on your account. This article outlines how to set rules to collect information at checkout and decrease fraud.

How do I get my money back?

When you receive an email from Stripe notifying you of a chargeback, click through to access the charge on Stripe and then enter evidence to prove the charge is legitimate. This information is passed from Stripe on to the credit card company to evaluate and determine whether or not the funds (including the chargeback fee) should be returned to you. We recommend providing the following evidence at a minimum, but the more evidence you can provide, the better your chance of winning the dispute.
 

1. In your Stripe account, click on ‘payments’ from the menu to the left and then ‘disputes’. This is where you will find all disputes and can see their status (won, lost, under review or needs response).
   
   
2. Click on one of the disputes to open it, and then click on ‘submit evidence’ at the top of the page
   
   
3. Under the section “I provided the customer with…”, select ‘digital products’.
    
4. Fill in the fields for product description (clarifying that tickets are sent immediately once the order is complete), customer name and customer email. For receipt, upload a pdf of this buyers order, which includes their tickets to the event and their receipt.
    
5. Reach out to the buyer to let them know what that charge on their statement was for and request that they reach out to their bank to drop the dispute. When you receive a response from the buyer, save that conversation as a pdf and upload it into the customer communication section as evidence. This is perhaps the most important piece of evidence you can provide as it links the email address on the ticket with the buyer and is a good rebuttal against the claim of credit card fraud.
    
6. Once you’ve entered all of your evidence, scroll to the bottom of the page and select either ‘save for later’ if you plan to come back and provide more evidence, or, ‘submit evidence now’. Note that once evidence is submitted you won’t have a chance to provide more details. Be sure to submit your evidence by the deadline listed.
    

How do I know when the chargeback is resolved?

Chargebacks are generally opened for 60 days, and you (the host) have ~15 days to provide evidence proving that the charge is legitimate. After your evidence is reviewed the chargeback will either be won or lost and you will receive an email from Stripe notifying you as such. If the chargeback is won, the disputed amount (along with the chargeback fee) will be returned to your balance. If the chargeback is lost, unfortunately, the funds will not be returned to you. Whether a chargeback is won or lost is at the sole discretion of the credit card company and the decision cannot be challenged. You can view a list of any open, won or lost chargebacks from your Stripe account under Payments > Disputes.

How do I know if there are chargebacks on my account?

When a dispute occurs, Stripe receives a notification of the disputed payment and sends you an automated email with the details of the dispute. Disputes can be found in the Dashboard of your Stripe account at https://dashboard.stripe.com/disputes. Each logged dispute includes all relevant information about the payment being disputed and the reason for the dispute the cardholder reported to their bank.  

How do I know how many chargebacks are on my account?

You can view this information on a per account or per event listing basis.

Account - www.universe.com/dashboard/reports, scroll down to view the Chargebacks report. Downloadable in csv or xls format.

Event Listing - navigate to www.universe.com/dashboard/my-events, then select Manage for the event you wish to view, navigate to the Reports tab, scroll down to view the Chargebacks report. Downloadable in csv or xls format

Does my refund policy protect me from chargebacks?

Refund policies do not protect event organizers from chargebacks. Any buyer can dispute a charge with their bank. This process is set in place by banks to protect buyers from potential fraud. While fraud is the most common cause for disputes, there are a variety of other reasons why customers may question a payment. Please note, you should include a clear description of your refund and cancellation policies in your event description. When a buyer purchases a ticket to an event, they are required to agree to your terms of service prior to checkout. Ensuring these policies are accurate will increase the likelihood that banks respect your policies in the event of a dispute. You can set your refund policy from the tickets tab of your event’s manage panel. A step by step guide on this process can be found here.