A chargeback always starts with an unhappy or confused customer who goes to their bank instead of coming to you. Knowing the most frequent causes helps you read each dispute correctly: some point to fraud, but many others point to something fixable in your operation.
The most common causes
- Fraud: the card was used without the cardholder's authorization. It's the classic cause; the legitimate cardholder doesn't recognize the purchase at all.
- Product or service not received: the customer paid but claims the order never arrived or the service was never provided.
- Product or service different from what was offered: what was received doesn't match the description — size, quality, features, or scope of the service.
- Unrecognized charge: the cardholder doesn't identify the charge on their statement, often because the merchant name means nothing to them. This includes legitimate purchases disputed out of simple confusion.
- Cancellation not applied: the customer canceled a purchase or a subscription and the charge went through anyway.
- Problems with a refund: a refund was promised but never arrived or took longer than reasonable, and the customer claimed it through their bank.
What each cause tells you
Outright fraud requires strengthening your risk controls. The other causes are usually operational: deliveries without proof, unclear descriptions, an unrecognizable merchant name on the statement, or slow cancellation and refund processes. Those are entirely in your hands.
Next step
Most of these causes can be mitigated with good operating practices. Review How to reduce the risk of chargebacks to address them before they turn into disputes.