Product insights
Get in touch
Sign in
Product insights
Insightful data for effective dispute resolution

Chargebackhit API helps merchants reconcile transactions by processing complex outcomes and responses. It ensures accurate matching of alerts to transactions, simplifying dispute resolution.


Alert flow

Chargeback Glossary
Chargeback notifications are messages that the merchant receives informing them that a chargeback has occurred or will soon occur.
alerts
are delivered to the merchant before a claim is made, giving them a chance to avoid it. The alerts inform the merchant that a chargeback is pending but has not yet been filed. In this case, the merchant may take independent actions to avoid the chargeback, such as a voluntary refund, and pass this information to the issuer.

By bundling all the alerts on the market, we can assist merchants with one of the first stages of the dispute-resolution process to resolve the issue without investing significant time into analyzing your disputes while also reducing your chargeback costs.

Alerts are issued either by issuers or card schemes and originate from customers who have initiated a chargeback. Here is a simplified overview of the process for all types of alerts:

  1. Cardholder contacts the issuing bank to dispute a purchase.
  2. Issuer returns notifications to the providers directly or via card schemes.
  3. Providers notify Chargebackhit of the upcoming dispute.
  4. Chargebackhit sends a request to the merchant and notifies the merchant of the incoming chargeback. Then the merchant decides either to refund the customer, stop order fulfillment, update order details, or dispute the transaction, depending on the alert type received.
  5. Merchant takes the necessary actions, such as matching the alert to a database transaction or issuing a refund.
  6. Merchant communicates the action taken to Chargebackhit.
  7. Once the response is received by Chargebackhit, Chargebackhit responds to the issuer according to the alert type. Assuming the merchant wants to avoid a chargeback, they refund the purchase and stop order fulfillment.
  8. Issuer receives the information, and under certain conditions, can stop the chargeback process.
  9. Cardholder gets information or a response from the issuing bank indicating that the money will be returned shortly, or they receive additional real-time information about the transaction. Obtaining information can also help to stop the chargeback process.

Chargebackhit API provides alert webhook notifications. Currently, its products include:

Cardholder Dispute Resolution Network’s (CDRN) unique and patented, closed-loop process directly integrates with top issuers and provides unmatched service quality and accuracy for merchants and issuers to resolve disputed payments, dramatically minimizing chargebacks and cardholder dissatisfaction. CDRN receives immediate notifications from issuing banks about cardholder issues.

Verifi CDRN alerts lead to the freezing of the chargeback process for 72 hours.

Before a dispute can be registered, Visa will require issuing banks to make an Order Insight inquiry into the transaction. Order Insight sends the transaction data from the merchant as it is gathered in real-time. This data contains delivery confirmations, purchasing device IDs, and even customer support interactions that link a cardholder to the purchase. Order Insight prevents disputes and friendly fraud by aiding cardholder recognition.
Additional transaction data is displayed to cardholders in real-time on their online statement. Consumer Clarity helps issuers determine if a cardholder has made a purchase, both via contact center or mobile device in real-time (such as Order Insight).
When a fraudulent transaction is confirmed, issuers send a fraud alert called a TC40 statement. TC40 tracks stolen card numbers and other identifiers for fraudulent transactions. The VISA product also includes dispute notifications for already-issued chargebacks, which you can receive more quickly than from the acquirers.
Disputes that have not been declined due to Consumer Clarity requests are routed through the issuer’s network and global Mastercard (including Mastercard Collaboration) alert network before they become chargebacks. Merchants should check these alerts through their payment processor gateway. Refund alerts do not affect merchant accounts as negatively as chargebacks. Typically, merchants will refund, stop shipping, or cancel subscriptions.
If a dispute survives an Order Insight request, Visa has provided a pre-dispute phase where the transaction details are sent to the merchant for automated review. Here, the merchant specifies certain conditions, the fulfillment of which can result in an automatic refund via Visa Response Online (VROL). Rapid Dispute Resolution (RDR) provides an immediate refund to the cardholder.
The key value of Compelling evidence in Chargebackhit system is to help merchants prevent disputes by providing supporting evidence for disputed transactions that can potentially lead to a more favorable outcome.
PayPal pre-dispute alerts help merchants prevent external PayPal chargebacks and streamline dispute resolution.

Alert types

Alert types represent the notifications merchants receive when a potential chargeback is detected but not yet filed. They help proactively address the issue and avoid the formal chargeback process. Each alert type serves a specific purpose, whether providing detailed transaction information to cardholders, facilitating voluntary refunds, or reconciling disputes.

Alert type Description Outcome
inquiry Provides order information to help cardholders identify purchases and build trust and transparency in the ecosystem. Default outcome acknowledged

order , customer , transactions , products , merchant information in the webhook
init-refund Matches the alert to the original transaction and updates its status, typically resulting in a refund. Enum outcome reversed , previously-reversed , decline , reverse-error , not-found , acknowledged , pending , shipped

order information in the webhook
fraud-notification
dispute-notification
resolved
prevented
Reconcile to the original transaction. Default outcome acknowledged

order information in the webhook and order_id is important for reconciliation alert to the original transaction

Outcome types

There are several outcome types associated with alerts. Each outcome type provides a status update about the related transaction, allowing merchants to track the progress and resolution of disputes.

Outcome type Description
reversed The transaction has been refunded following the alert.

This outcome occurs when an alert is successfully matched with a successful sale transaction, leading to a refund of the transaction.
previously-reversed The transaction has been refunded before the alert.

This outcome is determined when the transaction has already been refunded prior to the alert.
duplicate The transaction has been refunded due to a duplicate alert.

This outcome occurs when the alert is matched with a previously refunded transaction due to an alert received earlier.
decline The related transaction was not successful.

This occurs when the transaction was declined before the alert.
error The processing error has occurred requiring additional communication.
reverse-error Unable to process a refund.

This outcome occurs when an attempt to refund has failed due to a decline by the bank.
not-found The transaction has not been found.

This outcome occurs when an alert cannot be matched with any existing transaction.
acknowledged The default response for the alert is that no action is required with the transaction.
pending A temporary status that allows for a response at a later time, recommended within 24 hours, through the update outcome API method.
shipped This outcome applies to physical goods that have already been shipped.

Interaction

Type Products Actions
inquiry
  • Order Insight
    • Compelling evidence 3.0
  • Consumer Clarity
Alerts that require a response and transmission of additional data.
  • Matching
  • Response with the data
  • Timeout to prevent
prevented
  • Order Insight
    • Compelling evidence 3.0
  • Consumer Clarity
Successful prevention of disputes.
  • Matching and providing with response
init-refund
  • CDRN
  • Ethoca
Alerts that require a response and refund.
  • Matching
  • Refund the transaction or resolve with the cardholder
resolved
  • RDR
  • PayPal
Post-factum notification about the pre-dispute.
  • Matching and providing with response
fraud-notification
  • Verifi Inform
Notifies about the confirmed fraud cases.
  • Matching and providing with response
dispute-notification
  • Verifi Inform
Notifies about disputes.
  • Matching and providing with response
Use a Guide
Internal logic for quick matching of alert data by the system in real-time.
matching algorithm
to quickly match alerts to transactions using prioritized identifiers and flexible criteria to ensure real-time accuracy.

Looking for help? Contact us
Stay informed with Changelog