Payments, fraud and chargebacks, explained without the sales pitch.
Nothing is sold here. No vendor pays to be listed. Where something does not work, this site says so.
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What just happened?
A chargeback landed and I have days to respondWhat it costs, your actual deadline, and what to do in the next 30 minutesI sent proof and still lost the chargebackWho decided it, whether any step is left, and why tracking was not enoughMy chargeback rate is climbing and my processor emailed meWhat 0.9% actually triggers, and the things that move the number fastestCard payments started failing and I do not know whyAn hour-by-hour diagnostic: what to check, in orderMy processor rejected or closed my accountCheck the notice, the review route and your next applicationMy processor is holding my moneyReserves, rolling holds, and how to get a decision reversedMy processor says I owe moneyMatch the debit, check the agreement and choose a responseI want to fight a chargeback and win itThe evidence that actually works, and the cases not worth fightingSomeone is running stolen cards through my checkout right nowStop the bleeding: what to switch on in the first hourI am being charged more than I expectedRead your statement, find the padding, know what is negotiableI need to choose a payment processorWho to pick at your size, the real cost, and what to avoid signingI am launching soon and setting payments up from scratchStart with the short answer for a new business, then set up your first weekMy client missed their appointment. Can I charge them?The agreed fee, a declined card, deposits and clinic payer rulesAI orders appeared in my Shopify storeCheck the channel, checkout, fees and who handles the orderA customer paid through an app for a sale or jobCheck the account, payment type and notice before moving moneyCustomers say they do not recognise my chargeFix your billing descriptor before it becomes twenty chargebacksI am starting to sell to other countriesWhat changes: decline rates, fees, and the rules that follow youI want to move to a new payment providerCheck leaving costs, saved cards and what to move first
Look something up
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Chargeback reason codesStart with the code or what the customer says happenedDecline codesWhat "do not honor" and the rest actually mean, and whether to retryBenchmarksWhat a normal approval rate, fraud rate and chargeback ratio look likeResponse deadlinesHow many days you get, by network and by stageBusiness category codes (MCC)Your merchant category code, and why it affects your ratesGlossaryPlain-English definitions for every term on this site
Browse everything
Accepting paymentsHow money moves, processor choice, fees, approval ratesChargebacks and disputesReason codes, deadlines, fighting them, preventing themFraud preventionDetection, tools, what to buy and when not to buyRules and complianceNetwork rules, PCI, consumer protection lawDay-to-day operationsReconciliation, payouts, holds, running a risk teamStep-by-step playbooksFor the day it is already going wrongReference tablesCodes, thresholds, deadlines, definitions
Learn it properly
Not in a crisis, and just want to understand how payments work? The Guide is 15 short lessons, about 105 minutes in total, in order. Most people should start at pathway 1, because processor choice and fees drive everything else.