Chargeback Recovery Services may also be known as Chargeback Revenue Recovery or Chargeback Representment Services.
Chargebacks affect merchants in all industries and verticals, but merchants don't have to just accept chargebacks as a cost of doing business. While the chargeback process is intended to protect consumers, many abuse the process costing merchants billions in losses each year. A merchant can dispute a chargeback and attempt to reclaim the funds lost from the chargeback in a process known as representment.
Chargeback Recovery Services specialize in the representment process. They dispute chargebacks on behalf of merchants to help them reclaim these lost funds. These providers know which chargebacks they gain dispute and win as well the required evidence and procedures to follow to win the dispute.
There are many different types of chargebacks. There are legitimate chargebacks that can result from: customer service issues, damaged and defective goods, goods/services not being as advertised or errors with the payment processing system (such as charging someone twice).
Then there are chargebacks that are related to fraud. This can be from third party fraud, which is when a fraudster uses stolen payment credentials to make a transaction, or this can arise from first party fraud, also known as friendly fraud, which is when a customer uses their real information to make a transaction but later disputes the transaction in attempt to receive a refund. Friendly fraud can be costly and difficult to protect against, but many Chargeback Recovery Services are experienced in winning friendly fraud chargeback disputes.
Merchants can always dispute a chargeback themselves, but if they don't have the experience or resources dedicated to chargeback representment, a third party provider will have a greater chance of winning the dispute. Regardless of whether a merchant disputes a chargeback directly or goes through a
Chargeback Recovery service provider, there are fees associated with representment. Merchants should consider the value of the chargeback they are disputing and only represent a chargeback if it makes financial sense.
THE FRAUD PRACTICE
KEY NOTES
Alternative Solutions - If a merchant uses eCommerce Insurance they don't need to dispute chargebacks because these losses should already be covered. Merchants can also use Chargeback Monitoring Services to recognize and correct issues causing chargebacks, thus preventing future ones.
Building this In-House - Chargeback representment can be done entirely in-house. Merchants can look up transaction history, delivery dates, receipts and other evidence to be used for representment and then submit their rebuttal and evidence to the issuing bank. The value of a third party provider is that they take the time to complete these tasks while their experience in disputing many different chargebacks should result in higher win rates.
Estimated Cost - Typically service providers charge a set percentage of the value of the chargeback per chargeback disputed. The cost generally ranges from 15% to 25% of the value of each chargeback that is represented, although this percentage varies by vendor and can vary based on the type of chargeback that is being disputed.
Sample Venders - Verifi, Chargeback Gurus, Chargeback911
CHARGEBACK RECOVERY SERVICES TECHNIQUE OVERVIEW
Chargeback Recovery service providers dispute chargebacks on behalf of their merchant clients in attempt to recover the funds lost from the chargeback. Rather than provide all the required information and represent a chargeback themselves, merchants can outsource this activity to a Chargeback Recovery Service.
Key considerations when implementing or buying this functionality include:
Historically, what percentage of chargeback disputes has the service won? If a provider quotes a high win rate they are likely selective about which chargebacks they will represent.
Does the merchant pay for all chargebacks disputed or only disputes that were won?
Is the service provider experienced in disputing chargebacks from the card brands and alternative payment forms your customers typically use?
Is the service provider experienced in winning representment disputes against CNP transactions?
Does the service provider have experience in your vertical market?
Can the service provider successfully dispute Friendly Fraud chargebacks?
Are there any reason codes or types of chargebacks that the service provider will not dispute?
HOW DOES IT WORK?
Chargeback Recovery Services take over all of the tasks required to dispute a chargeback, a process known as representment, and attempt to provide enough evidence to have the chargeback reversed so the merchant can recover the funds lost from the chargeback. There is nothing to stop merchants from disputing a chargeback themselves, but the evidence required and procedures to follow differ by card brand, chargeback type and other factors which make the representment process difficult. Chargeback Recovery
Services should have experience in disputing a variety of different chargeback types and should have a thorough understanding of what procedures they must follow to successfully dispute a chargeback.
The supporting evidence to provide and how to prepare the proper documentation for representment can differ quite a bit across different types of chargebacks, but having the necessary evidence and following the correct procedures are major factors in whether or not a merchant will win the dispute and recoup their funds. Chargeback Recovery service providers should understand how these requirements differ by card association and chargeback type, and they should be experienced in how to organize and present supporting evidence and documentation in a way that will maximize the number of disputes they can win.
The Chargeback Recovery Service represents their merchant client and disputes chargebacks on their behalf. Leveraging their automated processes, existing relationships with issuing banks and their experience with the representment process the service provider attempts to win all eligible chargeback disputes on their client’s behalf.
HOW DO YOU USE THE RESULTS?
Within 1 to 3 weeks, depending on the type of chargeback, the merchant should receive response on whether or not they won their dispute and if the chargeback was reversed. When chargebacks are reversed the issuing bank has agreed that the merchant/Chargeback Recovery service provider gave sufficient evidence to prove the transaction was valid. In these cases the merchant will receive the funds deducted from their account as a result of the chargeback, minus the fees they owe the service provider which are usually a set percentage of the amount of the chargeback.
In the event that a merchant does not win their case for representment and a chargeback stands, the next escalation in disputing the chargeback would be to file for arbitration. In this process the card association acts as an arbitrator between the issuing bank and the merchant or their acquiring bank. While there is a fee associated with representing a chargeback, the fees for arbitration are even higher. Also, the card association has the final say in a representment case that goes to arbitration and this ruling cannot be challenged.