A Little Automation Makes the Chargeback World Go Round Easier

By Gabe McGloin, Head of Business Development EMEA at Verifi

So much of life is routine. On most days, many of us wake up at a set time to go to a job; we work a planned schedule; we commute a predetermined route both ways. On top of that, we program our morning coffee to brew at a certain time, set thermostats to turn on when we’re close to home after work, and even push a button to get our car to drive itself when possible. We have achieved this level of automation because doing so takes care of marginal tasks that are part of our daily routine, and we don’t want to think about them.

While much is also automated in the payment’s world, chargebacks have not traditionally been top of that list. Until now. Applying automation to transaction dispute resolution and chargeback management will help to reduce any human error in an already friction-filled process.

The Demand for Automated Chargeback Protection

In recent years, there have been many technological innovations to ensure customer convenience in digital payments, such as fraud protection for sellers and issuers. Tap-to-pay and contactless options enable frictionless purchasing experiences. EMV chips ensure reduction of fraud, benefitting customers, sellers, and issuers. Card networks have updated processes to provide transparency and a quicker response for customer return requests. Now, blockchain technology provides even more resistance from attack on digital purchases and more for greater protection against fraud. Dispute resolution technology has been due for a leap in evolution.

Solutions that enable issuers to collaborate with sellers to resolve disputes quickly and protect both parties from some of the costs associated with disputes and chargebacks have already brought the industry forward. This helps both parties to be protected as well as provide a customer with a timely resolution – and in some cases even prevent a chargeback.

Gabe McGloin

However, there is a need to build on this cooperation and take the chargeback management experiment to the next level. An automated solution provides real-time dispute resolution – something customers are used to in our instantaneous response culture. With this technology, sellers can define rules on how to resolve transaction challenges at the pre-dispute stage, creating a touchless experience for the seller and seamless dispute resolution for the issuer with almost no demand on operations. Nearly all human error and manual effort is removed from the resolution process.

Resolution at the Pre-Dispute Stage

Resolving a dispute prior to the possibility of it becoming a chargeback is essential for the new age of automation. In other words, resolve the transaction inquiry at the pre-dispute stage. Fortunately, a solution exists in market that allows sellers to define rules for automated pre-dispute resolution.

Establishing rules and attributes for pre-dispute resolution is simple for sellers. For example, a seller can set a rule to accept liability on disputed transactions of $25 or less. In addition, sellers can customise rules with attributes to accept liability on transactions with unique purchase identifiers, currency types, dispute categories, and more. If sellers set up around 10 rules and several attributes that can be applied to each rule, sellers can maximize control over the real-time dispute resolution that is right for their business, in addition to providing a better customer experience. Automation allows sellers to set it and forget it; the decisioning engine does the work automatically.

Using automation aligns with current technology trends and customer expectations for quick and efficient service.

Removing Human Limitations

Responding to disputes takes time, however quickly sellers respond to a notification or find themselves knee-deep in the chargeback process. Someone must manually review the pre-dispute, accept liability, and take action to refund the transaction. That person might make a mistake, take too long, or simply not be available due to a furlough or layoff. Automation remedies all of those concerns.

As the rest of the payments ecosystem embraces automation, so must the disputes and chargebacks world. From saving cost and minimising time to eliminating the possibility of human error, automation in dispute resolution can move the industry forward. Additionally, it answers the call of improving customer service. In an exceedingly competitive landscape, one bad customer interaction can mean a lost customer – something most sellers can’t afford. So, ensuring that any disputes are answered quickly and correctly is vital.