For a U.S. credit-card charge, start with the payment method and the first statement that shows the error. Save the statement, order record, seller's promise, delivery or cancellation evidence, and your communications. A written billing-error notice must reach the issuer within 60 days after the first statement containing the error was sent to you.

That deadline applies to qualifying credit-card billing errors; it isn't a universal chargeback deadline. Debit cards, prepaid cards, PayPal, app stores, buy now, pay later accounts, and bank transfers can have different procedures and time limits. If a transaction is genuinely unauthorized, contact the issuer or payment provider immediately as well.

A chargeback is not the same as asking the seller for a refund. For an ordinary delivery or service problem, start with the merchant, then ask the issuer or payment provider to investigate under the rules for the way you paid. A reversal isn't guaranteed.

The U.S. credit-card billing-error deadline

The FTC's guidance on disputing credit-card billing errors says to send a written dispute so that the issuer receives it within 60 days after the first bill with the error was sent to you.

Digital-goods problems that may fit this process include:

• A product or service wasn't delivered as agreed.
• You didn't authorize the transaction.
• The merchant charged the wrong amount or charged you twice.
• A promised credit or refund wasn't posted to the account.

The issuer generally must acknowledge the complaint in writing within 30 days, unless it has already resolved the problem. It must resolve the dispute within two billing cycles and no later than 90 days after receiving the complaint.

There is also a technical address condition in the FTC guidance. If you've moved, the issuer must have received your change of address in writing at least 20 days before the billing period ends for you to use this billing-error process.

This procedure is for qualifying credit-card disputes. Don't assume that the same 60-day rule applies to a debit card, prepaid card, PayPal payment, buy now, pay later account, or bank transfer.

Identify the payment method first

PayPal's U.S. Purchase Protection terms state that a dispute must be opened within 30 days of delivery or fulfillment, as applicable, or within 180 days after the payment was sent to the seller, whichever comes first. The program has eligibility requirements and exclusions.

A payment funded by a credit card may also involve the card issuer. Tell each provider if another dispute, refund request, or case is already open. Don't seek two recoveries for the same charge without explaining the other case.

Evidence to save for a digital-goods dispute

Create one folder for the transaction. Save copies rather than sending your only originals. Put the records in date order if you can.

Transaction details

Include:

• The statement entry showing the merchant name, date, and amount
• The order number or invoice
• The last four digits of the payment card, if requested
• The account email or username used for the purchase
• The product name and the merchant's contact details

A confusing statement descriptor can make a legitimate charge look unfamiliar. Include the descriptor and explain which merchant it relates to. Don't call a charge unauthorized solely because the name on the statement is different from the seller's brand.

What the seller promised

Save the product page, checkout screen, receipt, renewal notice, and relevant terms as they appeared when you paid. For a subscription, note:

• The advertised price
• The trial period
• The renewal date
• The billing frequency
• The cancellation instructions

Take screenshots showing the date when possible. Keep the web address and enough surrounding page content to show the relevant terms; a cropped image may leave out an important condition.

What actually happened

Match the records to the reason for the dispute:

• Digital download never arrived: Save the missing or expired link, delivery error, expected delivery date, and any message saying the file was sent.
• SaaS or online course access failed: Save activation errors, account screens showing no access, and the dates you tried to sign in.
• Unauthorized transaction: Report what you know to the issuer, including whether the card or account was lost, stolen, or used without permission. Don't guess about the person or device involved.
• Wrong or duplicate charge: Compare the invoice with the statement and mark both entries if the same purchase was billed twice.
• Subscription charged after cancellation: Save the cancellation confirmation, cancellation timestamp, renewal date, and emails or chats with the merchant.
• Refund missing: Keep the merchant's written promise, refund amount, promised processing date, and later statements showing that the credit didn't appear.

For phone conversations, make a note of the date, the number called, the representative's name if provided, and the result. Follow up in writing when possible.

What does not automatically make a charge disputable

A digital charge isn't automatically a billing error because you:

• Changed your mind after buying
• Forgot that a free trial would renew
• Didn't read the cancellation terms
• Disliked a product that was delivered as described
• Recognized the charge only after seeing a different statement descriptor

A no-refund policy doesn't automatically settle every dispute. It may matter to an ordinary refund request, but it doesn't by itself prove that an unauthorized charge was valid or that a product was delivered.

If you authorized the purchase but forgot to cancel a subscription, ask the merchant for a refund and cancel future renewals. Don't describe the transaction as unauthorized unless you genuinely didn't approve it.

How to dispute the charge

1. Contact the merchant for ordinary delivery or refund problems

For a missing download, failed access, incorrect amount, duplicate charge, or promised refund, send the merchant a short factual request. State the order number, the problem, the remedy you want, and a reasonable response date. Keep the reply, including a refusal.

Contact the card issuer or payment provider immediately if the charge is genuinely unauthorized. Don't wait for a merchant response if doing so could put a deadline at risk.

2. Send the credit-card dispute in writing

Use the billing-dispute address listed on your statement or in the issuer's instructions. It may be different from the address used for payments. If the issuer permits an online dispute form, you can use it as an additional record, but follow the issuer's written-notice instructions and save proof that your submission was received.

Make sure the notice arrives within 60 days after the relevant statement was sent. Include copies of the useful evidence and keep the originals.

3. Explain the facts in date order

A clear dispute should cover four points:

1. Identify the transaction.
2. State the reason: unauthorized, not delivered as agreed, incorrect amount, duplicate, or missing credit.
3. Describe what the merchant promised and what occurred.
4. List your contact attempts and identify the attached records.

Keep the central fact easy to find. A long account of every frustrating interaction can obscure the date, amount, and specific error the issuer needs to investigate.

4. Pay the undisputed balance

Follow the issuer's instructions while it investigates. Continue paying amounts that aren't part of the dispute rather than stopping payment on the entire statement. Keep checking later statements for fees, credits, a temporary adjustment, or a new charge.

5. Review the decision

If the issuer denies the dispute, ask for the decision and the evidence it relied on. Respond to specific gaps. For example, an account-creation record may show that a login was created without showing that you received the promised file or had access to the service.

Check whether the issuer offers reconsideration or an appeal process. If it doesn't acknowledge or resolve a written dispute within the applicable period, use the issuer's formal complaint channel and consider contacting a consumer-finance regulator. Keep delivery confirmations, letters, and case numbers.

A short chargeback evidence letter

Use the issuer's required form if it has one. Otherwise, adapt this wording:

Subject: Billing error dispute for [merchant], [amount], [date]

I dispute the charge of [amount] from [merchant] that appeared on my statement dated [date].

Reason for dispute: [unauthorized transaction / digital service not delivered as agreed / incorrect amount / duplicate charge / promised credit missing].

The transaction was described as [product or subscription]. The merchant promised [brief description]. On [date], [explain what happened]. I contacted the merchant on [dates] by [email, chat, or phone]. The response was [brief summary].

Attached are copies of the statement entry, order confirmation, relevant terms, delivery or access records, cancellation or refund records, and my communications with the merchant.

Please investigate this as a billing error and provide the result in writing.

Name:
Address:
Account or card last four digits:
Dispute reference, if available:

Don't include your full card number, password, or identity documents unless the issuer specifically requests them through a secure channel.

Subscriptions, cancellations, and trial renewals

The FTC's consumer guidance on free trials and auto-renewals recommends checking when and how much you'll be charged and walking away when cancellation instructions aren't clear. It also says that if you're charged without consent and the company won't refund the money, you should dispute the charge promptly with your credit or debit card company.

To protect your records:

• Cancel through the same account or channel used to subscribe.
• Save the confirmation page and email.
• Check whether cancellation stops future renewals or also asks for a refund.
• Review the next statement.
• Ask the merchant in writing to confirm the cancellation date.

The FTC's 2024 final-rule announcement about negative-option subscriptions doesn't, by itself, decide whether a particular posted charge qualifies for a billing-error dispute. Use the actual disclosure, consent, renewal, cancellation, and refund records instead.

Stopping future payments is different from reversing a charge that has already posted. Tell the issuer or payment provider whether you want future renewals stopped, the posted charge investigated, or both.

Limits of chargeback evidence

Evidence makes the timeline clearer, but it doesn't guarantee a reversal. The issuer may decide that the purchase was authorized and delivered as agreed. Card-network reason codes and online claims about chargeback win rates describe payment-provider processes; they aren't promises of a consumer refund.

Be accurate. Don't claim a purchase was unauthorized if you made it, edit screenshots or timestamps, or send a duplicate request without explaining the other case. A precise record is more useful than an exaggerated accusation.

Put the statement, receipt, merchant promise, delivery or cancellation records, and communications in date order. Then check the first-statement date. If the 60-day credit-card deadline may be approaching, send the written dispute to the issuer immediately.