FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS - CHARGEBACKS

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1 FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS - CHARGEBACKS # Questions Answer 1 What is a Chargeback? A Chargeback is the term used by Banks for debiting a merchant s bank account due to successful return of a transaction by the Issuing Bank under the Card Scheme Rules. 2. What is the Chargeback process? Step 1 - Transaction is disputed. Cardholder advises their Issuer of a problem with the transaction or an Issuer discovers a breach of the Card Scheme Rules (ie: unauthorised Card Not Present Transaction) Step 2 - Issuer advises Westpac Westpac receives dispute advice on behalf of the Westpac Merchant from the Issuing Bank after it has determined a chargeback reason. Step 3 - Processing of the Dispute by Westpac Depending on the chargeback reason, Westpac may contact the merchant to request supporting documentation. Liability rests with the merchant to provide satisfactory evidence regarding the transaction.

2 A Merchant has 14 working days to respond to this request with the supporting documentation for consideration (unless Westpac s request specifies a shorter period). Presentation of documentation does not guarantee chargebacks will be avoided. 3 What are the most common Chargeback reasons? Some chargebacks enter arbitration, where Westpac rejects the Issuers dispute in favour of the merchant evidence, and further investigation is undertaken or Westpac and the Issuer call for mediation by the Card Schemes. If the outcome of such measures is in favour of the cardholder rather than the merchant, the Bank may debit a merchant s account for a period of up to one year from the date of the original transaction. 1. Unauthorised Mail Order / Telephone Order (MOTO) transactions 2. Requested transaction copy or supporting documentation not received 3. Duplicate processing 4. Invalid Account number 5. Transaction exceeds Floor limit 6. Sales voucher not imprinted with card 7. Alteration of amount 8. Merchandise not received by Purchaser

3 9. Posting direct debits 10. Failure to action requests from customers to cancel direct debit authorities 4. What is meant by the term full card details? 5. I obtained full authorisation at the time of doing the transaction, why did I get a chargeback? 6. If I include the full card details, am I protected from chargebacks once the transaction has been approved? The full card details include the card number, card expiry date, card CCV number (for card not present transactions) and transaction amount Authorisation only confirms that funds were available at the time of the call, and that the card was not reported lost or stolen. It does not guarantee payment. Not necessarily. Authorisation only confirms that the Cardholder has sufficient funds to cover the purchase, and that the card has not been reported lost or stolen at the time of purchase. Chargeback can still arise for various reasons, such as; if the transaction is invalid, or the cardholder indicates the goods were not delivered as described. Common Chargeback Reasons appear in Question #3.

4 7. I have a business where I accept cards You should always: at the point of sale. How can I protect myself against Card fraud and chargebacks? Check to ensure that the name on the card matches the customer profile. For example, if the customer is a man and the name on the card is Linda Smith you will need to obtain another form of payment Check that the embossed number on the face of the card matches the number printed in reverse italics on the signature panel Check the hologram. Authentic cards have very clear 3 dimensional holograms Check the validity dates to ensure that the card has not expired Check the signature on the card and ensure that it matches the signature on the sales slip Be alert to customers who : - Make indiscriminate purchases - Try to rush you at closing time - Make purchases, leave the store and return to make more purchases - Try to pay using multiple Cards - Do not have proper identification, and - Refer to the Card signature when signing If in doubt call Westpac s Merchant Business Solutions Help Desk on How can I guarantee I ll never receive a chargeback? Unfortunately, chargebacks are part of credit card processing and cannot be avoided completely, but you can ensure your card acceptance procedures assist to minimise the risks, as outlined in this document. In a card present environment, ensure you check the card against the person and signature. Pay close attention to transactions that seem suspicious in a Card not present environment since you cannot be sure of the identity of your customer.

5 MasterCard and Visa have introduced a fraud deterrent tool called 3D Secure (the MasterCard brand is called MasterCard SecureCode and the Visa brand is called Verified by Visa). This tool will further assist in protecting your business against counterfeit card fraud. (Refer to Your Guide to 3D Secure ) Both the MasterCard and Visa fraud deterrent tool requires the merchant to be registered and tested prior to implementation. As part of the verification process, the Cardholder must enter a password when making purchases over the internet, similar to entering a PIN in an EFTPoS terminal. Questions specific to Card Not Present Transactions 1. What is a CCV Number? CCV Number stands for Card Check Value Number. It is a 3-digit number printed on the reverse of MasterCard cards and Visa cards issued by Australian Card Issuers participating in the CCV program. It is the last 3 digits after the Card number which is printed in reverse italics on the signature panel of the card. 2. What does a CCV Number do? When used during a transaction, the Issuing bank can further confirm that the person making the transaction is in possession of the card and not just quoting a card number that could have been obtained fraudulently. 3. What benefits will I receive as a Merchant who requests a CCV Number from my customers? It is a fraud deterrent tool used mainly in the card not present payment areas (Internet and MOTO). For Issuers who are participating in CCV, it allows them to perform an additional measure of validation but does not authenticate or identify the user of the card as the rightful owner.

6 NOTE: There is no guarantee against a chargeback when a merchant processes credit card transactions which include the CCV Number. The Issuing Bank may consider the presentation of the CCV in the sale/purchase transaction message as further evidence of the legitimacy of the transaction, but will not guarantee the sale against chargebacks based on the presence of CCV. Merchants should always perform their normal due diligence measures when using CCV Numbers. 4. How can I accept CCV Numbers from my customers? During the payment process, your customer will need to supply you with: 1. the account number on the front of the card, and 2. the expiry date, and 3. the last three digits of the number printed in the signature panel The CCV number forms part of the message that goes to the Card Issuer. Participating Card Issuers then validate the CCV number 5. Are there any other names for the Visa refers to the Number as a CCV2; MasterCard, a CVC2; and American Express uses 4DBC CCV? 6. Is the CCV accepted everywhere? MasterCard and Visa have both mandated that Australian Issuing Banks verify this Number when presented in the payment message, however verification of the Number does not guarantee the cardholder or the Issuer will not dispute the transaction. Overseas, MasterCard Issuers must be able to receive the CCV. If they elect not to participate in the CCV program, they do not need to respond with evidence that they have validated the CCV Number.

7 7. Since I have return clientele in my business am I allowed to store the CCV number for future use? No. The Schemes do not permit merchants to store this level of detail on your system under any circumstances. 8. I use an online payment gateway and You should always; won t be able to use the card present advice. What can I do to be on the Obtain full card details, including CCV lookout for possible chargeback situations? If in doubt, call the customer to confirm the order, or use their delivery address to search the White pages for a match Install software that performs velocity checks Use dynamic fraud detection software (where suitable) Establish business rules that limit the number of payments and value of transactions allowed through your gateway software each day by the same customer Be suspicious of customers who want to pay with multiple cards Do not accept payment from a potential customer that asks you to supply them with goods from Australia that are different to the goods or services you provide. Contact the bank with details of this type of Activity. Use 3D Secure for online identification of your customers and a possible reduction in chargeback liability (in specific chargeback instances) Pre-Authorisation Questions 1. What is a pre-authorisation? A pre-authorisation is a transaction that: Checks to ensure that the card does not have a lost or stolen status placed on it at the time of auth Checks that the card is still valid;

8 Checks that the cardholder has the funds available; Reserves the funds for a period of time assigned by the Cardholders Issuing Bank In Australia, pre-authorisation usually reserves the funds for a period of 3 to 5 business days. Overseas Banks can reserve the funds up to 12 business days. Once a preauthorisation expires, the funds become available to the Cardholder. 2. Are there any conditions to using preauthorisations? No. There are currently no conditions on pre-authorisation use. However, if you are using a terminal you must use the right transaction type, and if you are using Internet based software, your software must be programmed to send a pre-auth transaction (and not a purchase transaction). If you use a pre-auth transaction to reserve the funds, you must use the pre-auth reference number when you process the actual sales / purchase transaction. Failure to do so will cause two debit transactions to appear for a period of time until the pre-authorisation drops off and may cause the complaints from the cardholder. If you intend to use pre-authorisations, you must also inform your customers that their funds will be unavailable for a period of approximately 5 working days. 3. Can Westpac remove or extend any pre-authorisation period set by the Issuing Bank? No, The period is fixed for the duration of a pre-authorisation transaction, and is governed by the Card Issuer. The number of days is fixed for all merchants.

9 4. If I don t complete a sale transaction on a pre-authorisation I ve made within the Issuers timeline, what happens to the original preauthorisation? The pre-authorisation will expire after the pre-authorisation period set by the Issuer has elapsed. 5. I use an online payment gateway and won t be able to use the card present advice. What can I do to be on the lookout for possible chargeback situations? This is a repeat of Q8 above in the Card not present sectionyou should always; Obtain full card details, including CCV If in doubt, call the customer to confirm the order, or use their delivery address to search the White pages for a match Install software that performs velocity checks Use dynamic fraud detection software (where suitable) Establish business rules that limit the number of payments and value of transactions allowed through your gateway software each day by the same customer Be suspicious of customers who want to pay with multiple cards Do not accept payment from a potential customer that asks you to supply them with goods from Australia that are different to the goods or services you provide. Contact the bank with details of this type of Activity. Use 3D Secure for online identification of your customers and a possible reduction in chargeback liability (in specific chargeback instances)