Chargebacks: The Evidence to Collect First

A disputed order arrives with a deadline, often around seven days, and the reply window is shorter than most sellers assume. Two details decide most cases: whether the delivery address matched the order, and whether you can show the goods arrived. Everything else is supporting colour. Gather those two first, before you write any argument.

Two facts decide most disputes

Address verification and proof of delivery carry more weight than a polite explanation. Keep the confirmation the customer received, the address you shipped to, and the carrier's scanned delivery record. If those three agree, your file is strong. If they disagree, find out why before submitting, because a mismatch hands the case to the buyer.

Also keep the customer's own words. If they said in writing that the parcel arrived and then disputed the charge, that message is evidence. Customer service notes buried in a chat tool are hard to export under deadline, so pull them into the same folder as the invoice the day the dispute lands.

Tracking and signature are not the same proof

Compare a delivery scan against a signature or a photograph with a named recipient. A scan proves a parcel reached a location; a signature ties it to a person. For high-value goods the second is worth the extra cost, and for low-value items it is not. Set the signature threshold by order value rather than by habit.

Practical habit: build a standing checklist in your order system so the file assembles itself. Invoice, address confirmation, carrier record, message history, and a one-paragraph summary. When a dispute arrives, you attach rather than investigate. Cases submitted on day one are approved noticeably more often than cases submitted on day six.

Fighting every dispute has a cost

Small disputes sometimes cost more to contest than to refund, especially once staff time is counted. Set a value floor and refund below it without argument. Above the floor, always contest, because repeated losses on larger orders affect your processing terms. Blanket policies in either direction usually cost more than the rule they replace.