Countless times and you’re right, it’s not fair at all. Have you considered looking into tools like IPQS to help flag the high risk orders so you can avoid them? They have a shopify plugin too to make things easier.
Topic summary
A merchant received a chargeback claim for a fraudulent transaction and had funds immediately deducted during the investigation, despite providing evidence of delivery. The chargeback amount exceeded the original transaction by $90 (a partial refund had already been processed).
Key Issues Raised:
- Merchants lose both product and payment during chargeback investigations
- Banks often side with customers even when merchants provide tracking, delivery confirmation, and other evidence
- Payment processors (like Stripe) don’t allow challenges to chargeback decisions
- Shopify has no authority to intervene in chargeback rulings
- One merchant experienced a month-long delay before their evidence was submitted to the bank
Recommended Prevention Strategies:
- Require delivery signatures for third-party verification
- Photograph items during packaging
- Save all customer communications via email/text
- Use fraud detection tools to flag high-risk orders before shipping
- Encourage customers to contact the business directly for issues rather than filing chargebacks
Available Options:
- Contact the payment provider directly (not Shopify) for investigation details
- Consider chargeback arbitration (expensive, rarely successful)
- Consult specialized chargeback management companies
Multiple merchants report similar experiences with unresolved losses. One suggests organizing collective action or media attention to address the systemic issue. The discussion remains open with no clear resolution for recovering losses.