How to reply to a dispute

You can respond to a dispute in two ways by either:

  1. Accepting the dispute
  2. Challenging the dispute

You must reply to the dispute before the “Reply Deadline” mentioned in the dispute e-mail has been exceeded, else we will accept the dispute on your behalf.

Accepting a dispute

Sometimes the case is clear, and you can see that the transaction was fraudulent. In this case, there is nothing to do but to accept the dispute.

To agree to a dispute just respond to the dispute e-mail you have received from Paylike with “I accept the dispute”.

Accepting a chargeback

In the case that the dispute is a chargeback, the transaction has already been refunded to the cardholder, and the transaction amount will be deducted from your account reserve.

Accepting a retrieval request

If you accept or do not respond to a retrieval request, the issuing bank will most likely make a chargeback to issue a refund to the cardholder. Therefore we automatically refund the cardholder deducting the amount from your account reserve and saving you for another dispute fee.

You should never initiate a refund for a disputed transaction to a cardholder since this is handled directly in the Visa and Mastercard dispute system.

Challenging a dispute

If you do not accept a dispute, you can challenge it. The process is the same for both retrieval requests and chargebacks.

To challenge (reply to the issuing bank) the dispute you must provide compelling evidence that you have delivered the product or service to the cardholder in the condition, manner and delivery time that was agreed at the time of sale.

The compelling evidence that you should include in every response depends on the type of product or service:

Physical products

  • Receipt, order confirmation or invoice including:
  • Description of the product
  • The total amount paid
  • The last four digits of the card number
  • Shipping address
  • Copies of emails, letters, records of telephone conversations
  • A short description of the communication between you and the customer after the customer has filed the dispute (if applicable)
  • Shipping date
  • Shipping carrier
  • Tracking number
  • Shipping confirmation that the product was delivered to the shipping address

Digital products or services

  • Receipt, order confirmation or invoice including:
  • Description of the product or service
  • The total amount paid
  • The last four digits of the card number
  • Delivery address or means of delivery (e.g. PDF via e-mail)
  • Copies of emails, letters, records of telephone conversations
  • A short description of the communication between you and the customer after the customer has filed the dispute (if applicable)
  • Activity log showing IP-address, logins including timestamps and activity
  • Proof of delivery (e.g. proof that you sent the product via e-mail)

Offline services

  • Receipt, order confirmation or invoice including:
  • Description of the service
  • The total amount paid
  • The last four digits of the card number
  • Copies of emails, letters, records of telephone conversations
  • A short description of the communication between you and the customer after the customer has filed the dispute (if applicable)
  • Description of how the service was provided
  • Date of service delivery
  • Service delivery documentation (e.g. a signed contract)

Evidence depending on the dispute reason

For some dispute reasons, more evidence can help overturn the dispute to your favour.

Product or service not as described

  • Provide a detailed description of the product and service and provide documentation on how the product or service was presented to the customer at the time of the sale

Wrong amount charged

  • Proof that the cardholder was presented the transaction amount and was aware of the pricing (including fees for e.g. delivery and payment)

Refund not processed

  • Argumentation for why the cardholder is not eligible for a refund with reference to your refund policy and the applicable law
  • Refund policy (terms and conditions)
  • Proof that you have presented the refund policy to the cardholder and that the cardholder accepted it

Note that if you decide to issue a refund to the cardholder and thereby accept the chargeback, just reply with “I accept the chargeback” and do not try to refund the cardholder by other means. The cardholder is automatically refunded the transaction amount at the time you receive the dispute.

Cancelled subscription

  • Argumentation for why the cardholder is not eligible to cancel the subscription with reference to your cancellation policy and the applicable law
  • Cancellation policy (terms and conditions)
  • Proof that you have presented the cancellation policy to the cardholder and that the cardholder accepted it
  • Activity log that shows the cardholder has used the service or accessed the product after claiming to have cancelled the subscription

Duplicate

If you are confident that the transaction is not a duplicate, you must provide evidence that the two transactions are for two separate purchases.

You should be able to provide documentation linked to each transaction for at least one of:

  • Receipt, order confirmation or invoice
  • Shipping or delivery documentation

Creating the dispute reply letter

The dispute reply must be combined in one PDF and present your documentation by including the most important first (receipt) and then by relevancy.

When replying to a chargeback include the following before your documentation:

  1. State that you do not accept the chargeback
  2. Present your argumentation for why you do not accept the chargeback and sum up your documentation

Save the PDF-file with the “Paylike Dispute ID” as the file name and reply to the e-mail you received with the dispute.

The reply will then be quality assured by us. If the letter is accepted, it will be sent to the issuing bank and follow the dispute procedure. If we do not accept the letter, we will return to you with feedback on how to create a valid dispute reply.