A chargeback is a payment dispute initiated by the cardholder with their credit card issuing bank. A buyer asks the credit card company to reverse a transaction that has already cleared. The amount of the reversed transaction is deducted from the seller's account. The seller can then dispute the chargeback with proof of purchase, signature, proof of delivery, etc. When a chargeback occurs, the credit card issuing and acquiring banks will investigate to determine which party is responsible for the transaction.

All sellers who accept credit card payments run the risk of chargebacks and are liable for chargebacks. Just as sellers accepting personal cheques might receive an occasional bad cheque, sellers accepting credit cards, whether in person or through MonsterPay, they may encounter a chargebacks from time to time. Chargebacks are an unfortunate but realistic cost of doing business, and most sellers factor this cost into their business risk model.

A chargeback is usually generated when a cardholder disputes a transaction because of one of the following:

• Non-fulfilment of product or service;
• Unauthorised purchase;
• Product/service expectations not met.