Stop chargebacks

What is the reason for chargebacks?

From what I've been told by many small online merchants, many cbs are for "items not received." But, with a signature required, I believe this could be greatly reduced...perhaps.

We ship 100's of packages each week and charge backs are very rare for this issue. Generally if you can supply a proof of delivery from UPS, FEdex etc that is sufficient to solve any charge backs.

However if you are selling a high value item like jewelry, electronics etc then you may want to require a signature. There is an extra fee for a mandatory signature.

Keep in mind that most shipping carriers (soon including Priority Mail) automatically insure packages for $100 which may help.

All items I ship are more high-end and are signature required. I receive maybe 3-5 chargebacks each year mainly to damages. The signature doesnt help me at all, the bank always will find the buyer in favor. You need to really work it out with the person who filed the chargeback and have them reverse the funds back to you.

UPS has a signature required service but it costs a bit extra, just like the USPS signature required. I know because I have had to sign for things that have been shipped to me via UPS that were over a certain dollar value.

Take a look at the customer's IP. Some customers buy from countries that are known for having high levels of frauds and use a US virtual address for shipping.

If you can blacklist visitors from some countries (and specific refunders), you'll save lot of time (and money from chargeback costs).

Best Regards,

Diego.

Normally if you provide a Tracking number you're odds of winning the claims are good, but as mentioned above requiring a signature might better your odds but it is a costly service, unless you have some kind of deal with your courier company.

Signature confirmation will help - especially with the rise of "friendly fraud" these days. I don't think just the tracking number is sufficient, as the customer can say they still didn't receive the item.

There are other things that can help prevent chargebacks. Stellar customer service is one. Make it easier for the customer to contact you, rather than the credit card company. Have accurate product descriptions. Stuff like that will help. Fraud detection/prevention will help too. Someone mentioned blacklists. Those are extremely helpful. You can blacklist an entire country and/or a specific IP address.

The most important thing to do is fight when issues arise. If you just keep paying chargebacks (and fees) without trying to win in representment, you'll lose a lot of money. Also, if you get into trouble (high chargeback ratios) and are in danger of losing your processor, talk with a professional. We've used Chargebacks911 in the past for chargeback management. It really helped.

Good luck!