Managing Disputes with Cyncly Payments powered by Payments Flex

Updated September 25, 2026 12:54

Cyncly Payments Dispute Overview Guide

This document will provide you and your staff with educational guidance as it relates to dispute processing and suggest ways to help you prevent financial chargebacks and liability.

This guide is provided as a courtesy and is to be used for general purposes only. This material has been assembled from documentation supplied by the networks, therefore, Cyncly is not responsible for any inaccurate or incomplete information. Materials are subject to change; and scenarios can vary on a case-by-case basis. Chargebacks should be reviewed and presented as individual cases.

1.0 Players in the Chargeback Process

Chargebacks are essentially disagreements between a cardholder and a merchant with the cardholder’s issuing bank being involved. That said, there are additional key players that are involved in this process. Below are images and definitions for each.

While all are part of the chargeback process, the amount of direct involvement can vary from case to case. This matters because it will all take time extending the process across week’s (or even months) of time. Dispute monies will be inaccessible to you until the claim is resolved.

2.0 Dispute Overview

A dispute provides an issue with a way to return a contested transaction. When a cardholder disputes a transaction, the issuer may request a detailed explanation of the problem from the cardholder. Once the issuer receives this information, the first step is to determine whether a dispute situation exists. There are many reasons for disputes including:

Merchant failed to get an authorization
Merchant failed to obtain card imprint
Merchant processed the transaction incorrectly

When a dispute occurs, the card issuing bank sends the transaction back to the acquirer and disputes the dollar amount of the disputed sales. The acquirer then researches the transaction. If the dispute is valid, the acquirer deducts the amount of the dispute from the merchant’s bank account and informs the merchant. In addition, when a chargeback occurs, the merchant is charged a $25.00 chargeback fee. Unfortunately, you probably won’t know a chargeback is coming until it happens. In addition, some chargebacks can be initiated by the issuing bank. Since the cardholder isn’t involved in those situations, bank chargebacks are very rarely reversed.

Why Disputes Occur

Disputes can occur for several reasons including:

Fraud
Processing errors (Examples may include subscription errors, incorrect amount was charged to the customer’s card, customer was accidently charged twice for the same item, a wrong card was charged, or the customer was billed for items they didn’t order.)
Consumer disputes
Merchant abuse (When an item varies significantly from the advertised product, service was not provided as expected, etc.)
Errors made by Acquirers, card issues and cardholders
Fulfillment orders which may include inventory errors, shipping errors, or other basic fulfillment errors including wrong color or material, etc.

3.0 Responding to Disputes

Go to your Merchant Portal > Payments Tab > Disputes Subtab
Click into the line item to view payment details and scroll down and select Accept Dispute or Counter Dispute

A screenshot of a computer

AI-generated content may be incorrect.

Countering a Dispute

Review the Dispute

Here you will give context to the issuing bank. You will be asked to:

Confirm dispute details

Provide a brief explanation of the product/service

Select high-level indicators (e.g., product/service type, delivery method)

Here you are encouraged to:

Be factual and concise

Match explanation to the dispute reason

Avoid emotional or speculative language

When complete, Save & Continue.

Collect Evidence

Here you will be asked to:

Provide additional information for the cardholder’s issuing bank to consider

Provide customer details

Upload Documents & Submit

Here you will upload supporting documents, review and submit.

Accepted formats for attachments:

PDF, JPG, JPEG, PNG

File size rule:

A total upload size limit of 5MB applies across all files

Please note you cannot make changes to the dispute evidence once you submit.

Here is a video reviewing the process of Countering a Dispute.

4.0 Setting Up Dispute Email Notifications

To ensure that you are notified when a dispute occurs, visit the Cyncly Merchant Portal to verify that an email address has been entered in the “dispute email” field.

To do this, go to your Admin Panel > click the Cyncly Merchant Portal > select the Merchant Tab > click into the Merchant ID line item > scroll to the Notification section > Click Edit > add the appropriate email(s) to the Disputes field > be sure to click “Add” or press enter on your keyboard after typing each email address > click SAVE when finished. It is helpful if there are multiple people within your business that should be made aware of the dispute and eliminate a single point of failure. Setting up this email notification will ensure that you are notified of disputes when they occur and assist you in handling them in a timely manner.

5.0 Best practices

Card Present Card present transactions are also known as in-person transactions that take place when the customer physically hands over their payment card to the merchant at the point of sale. This usually involves swiping, inserting or tapping the card into a card reader or terminal. Generally, card present transactions are considered less risky because the business can physically inspect the card and, in some cases, verify the cardholder’s identity. Best practices for card present transactions include:

Authorization: Do not complete a transaction without obtaining an authorization.
Declined Authorization: Do not complete a transaction if the authorization request was declined.
Expired Card: Do not accept a card after it’s “Good Thru” or “Valid Thru” date.
Card imprint for key entered transactions: If for any reason, you must key enter a transaction for a card present sale, get an imprint of the card on the transaction receipt using a manual imprinter.
Legibility: Ensure the transaction information on the transaction receipt is complete, accurate and legible before completing the sale. An illegible receipt, or receipt which produces an illegible copy, may be returned because it cannot be processed properly.
Fraudulent Card-Present Transaction: If the cardholder is present and has the payment information but not the card, do not accept the transaction. Even with an authorization approval, the transaction can be disputed and sent back to you if it turns out to be fraudulent.

Card Not Present

Card not present transactions refer to payments in which the cardholder does not present a physical card at the time of the payment. Payments accepted online and over the phone are examples of card not present transactions. In these instances, it’s easier for fraudsters to use stolen credit card numbers when they don’t have to show a physical card.

These types of payments are considered high-risk transactions because they are more susceptible to fraud and disputes. When taking a phone order (especially from a new customer), it’s best to restrict these orders to be picked up in person or delivered. During pickup, the merchant should view the customer’s driver’s license to ensure it matches the name on the card that was used for the purchase. If the customer is unable to comply, it is in the merchant’s best interest not to process the transaction as it could later result in a chargeback due to being a fraudulent transaction. Best practices for card not present transactions include:

Use Address Verification Service (AVS) and Card Verification Value (CVV) or Card Verification Code (CVC): This is a three- or four-digit number found on the back of the card. CVV is the method used by Visa and CVC is used by MasterCard.
Ensure your website clearly communicates your refund policy in a sequence of pages before final checkout with a “click to accept” button, checkbox, or location for an electronic signature.

Additional Best Practices

Make sure your business name is clear and that your customers can recognize your name on their bills. Cardholders must be able to look at their bank statements and recognize transactions that occurred at your establishment. If you have questions as to what your billing descriptor is currently setup for or wish to change it, please contact Cyncly Support.
Make sure your business name is legible on receipts.
If an item is out of stock or no longer available, advise the cardholder in writing. Do not substitute another item unless the customer agrees to it.
Disclose the refund policy for returned/cancelled merchandise or services to the customer at the time of the transaction.
Ensure that your refund policy is clearly stated on your receipt. For example, no refunds, returns or exchange only, in store credit only, etc.
Up your customer service game by giving prompt responses, easy to find contact data, and active engagement on social media.
Implement alerts to notify you when a dispute is initiated, providing an opportunity to address the issue before it escalates.

6.0 Dispute Flow

7.0 Dispute Timing

For many merchants, chargebacks are a common source of frustration and confusion. Part of this comes from the fact that every card network sets its own rules for the chargeback process. While many of the basics tend to the be same, other areas can vary.