How to avoid payment disputes
Collect as much payment information from your customer as possible:
- Make sure all payment information collected is the Cardholders information.
- Keep your facility contact information (phone, email and website) easily accessible to customers.
- Avoid allowing customers to rent a unit and use a payment method with a different name.
- Encourage tenants to communicate with the facility if they don't agree with a charge.
What is the chargeback process?
When a chargeback occurs, you will be notified via email.
Email example:
You can let the ESS Team know if you would like to accept the chargeback, which will refund the disputed amount back to the customer, or have the ESS Team dispute the chargeback on your behalf. Disputing the chargeback provides an opportunity to submit evidence to prove that the charge was a valid transaction for the correct amount.
In either case, the transaction amount will initially be deducted from your next deposit report. Your software will not allow you to issue a refund on the transaction because the funds have already been sent back to the tenant.
The Easy Storage Solutions Support Team is not involved in the decision making component of this process. Dispute outcomes are out of the control of the ESS Team and are solely determined by the issuing bank. We can only facilitate the submission of documentation or accept liability on a merchant’s behalf.
đŸ“– You can learn more about chargebacks and Easy Storage Solution's involvement in the process in our article: Easy Storage Payments Chargeback Process.
Accept the chargeback
If you've already resolved the issue with your tenant and wish to accept the chargeback, please let us know by responding to the chargeback email. We will accept the dispute on your behalf, which will automatically refund the tenant. You can then submit a new payment if that is what was agreed upon with your tenant.
Dispute the chargeback
If you would like ESS to dispute this claim on your behalf, please respond directly to the email you receive with documentation to support the legitimacy of the original transaction within 5 business days of receiving the email. Although our chargeback emails are sent from a no-reply email address, responses will be directed to our Support Team. Do not forward the chargeback email to another individual. If you do the email reply will not work properly.
Supporting documentation types include:
1. Signed contract
You can find the tenant’s signed lease agreement in your software. From the tenant’s account, click View next to Storage Agreement in the Rentals area of the account. Click on the agreement link and download the PDF.
đŸ“– How do I view or print a storage agreement?
2. Payment Receipt
You can find the tenant’s payment receipt for the chargeback by clicking on the date to the left of the disputed payment. Click Receipt in the top right. Click on the PDF and download.
đŸ“– Reprint or Resend a Receipt
3. Legitimate payment history from the same card
You can find the tenant’s payment history from the tenant’s account in your software. Scroll down to the bottom of the billing history and click on Full History. Click on PDF and download.
4. A written letter explaining the situation which led to the dispute of the original transaction.
We recommend including a letter as it can increase your chances of winning the dispute.
Failure to respond to this email with supporting documentation will result in loss of the dispute by default.
Once we are informed by the bank as to whether the dispute settlement was won or lost, we will inform you via email. If the dispute is lost, you will see a Chargeback Refund on your deposit report. If won, you will see the funds added to a future deposit report.
Important Reminders
- Depending on the cycle of the chargeback, the cardholder can dispute a transaction more than once. Card brands have different parameters around how many times a cardholder can dispute a charge and the cycle in which funds are credited/debited. If you’ve won a dispute, there could still be a window of time during which the cardholder can dispute the transaction for a second or third time. The facility is charged a chargeback fee for different stages of the chargeback.
- Respond directly to the Chargeback email you receive to prevent communications from being missed or misdirected. If you have any questions or additional information to provide, please respond to the chargeback notification email. Calling ESS Support or sending a separate email to the ESS Support Team can cause delays in connecting your message with the dispute case.
- The Easy Storage Payments Support Team is not involved in the decision-making component of this process. We can only facilitate the submission of documentation or accept liability on a merchant’s behalf.