Most small sellers lose winnable disputes the same way: they assemble whatever they can find, attach it all, and write a paragraph explaining that the customer is wrong. Reviewers work through these quickly, and a bundle that does not answer the specific question being asked reads as a bundle with no answer in it.
Every dispute arrives with a reason code. The code is the question. Everything else is your answer to it.
The seven questions behind seven common codes
| Dispute reason | What the issuer is deciding | Records that carry the response |
|---|---|---|
| Merchandise not received | Did the goods or services reach the buyer? | Order confirmation, payment authorization, fulfilment or packing record, carrier tracking showing delivery |
| Credit not processed | Was a promised refund actually issued — or did the policy the buyer accepted not entitle them to one? | Order confirmation, payment authorization, refund or cancellation record, customer correspondence |
| Merchandise not as described | What was the buyer shown before they paid? | Order confirmation, the listing as it stood at purchase, customer correspondence, terms accepted at checkout |
| Fraudulent transaction | Did the cardholder authorize this purchase? | Payment authorization, AVS and CVV result, billing-to-shipping address match, delivery to that verified address |
| Duplicate transaction | Were there two legitimate purchases, or one purchase billed twice? | Order confirmation and payment authorization for each charge, tied to a distinct order |
| Subscription canceled | Was the recurring charge still authorized when it posted, and how was it canceled? | Subscription terms accepted at signup, payment authorization, any cancellation correspondence |
| Incorrect amount | Does the amount charged match what the buyer agreed to pay? | Order total as agreed, terms accepted at checkout, payment record showing what actually posted |
Read the table across, not down. Tracking is the centre of a not-received response and close to irrelevant in a not-as-described one. The listing screenshot is the whole case for not-as-described and adds nothing to a fraud claim. Sellers who keep one “chargeback folder” template are sending the wrong records six times out of seven.
Four habits that decide the outcome before you write anything
1. Capture the listing before you edit it
A not-as-described dispute turns on what the product page said at the moment of purchase. If you have since fixed a typo, swapped a photo, or updated the dimensions, the current page is not evidence of anything. Save a copy of the listing when an order ships, or at minimum when a dispute lands — before you touch the page.
2. Keep the verification results, not just the outcome
“The payment went through” is not evidence in a fraud dispute; an unauthorized transaction also goes through. The AVS and CVV response codes are the part that speaks to authorization, and most gateways keep them on the transaction record rather than showing them in the order view. Find where yours stores them before you need them at speed.
3. Tie every record to this order
A tracking number in a screenshot with no order number beside it, an email thread with the subject line cropped out, a packing slip from a batch of forty: each of these is a record the reviewer cannot connect to the transaction in front of them. Same order ID visible on every page is worth more than three extra attachments.
4. Answer only the question asked
Two paragraphs of context about the buyer's tone, prior orders, or your refund philosophy does not help. State the facts, in order, with dates, and let the attachments do the work.
What does not belong in the submission
Your own gap list. It is genuinely useful to know that you never got a signature on delivery and that your correspondence with this buyer is thin — that is what tells you whether to fight the dispute at all, and what to fix before the next one. It belongs in your notes.
It does not belong in the file you send. A response that says “unfortunately we no longer have the original packing record” has volunteered the reason to decide against you. Say what you can support; attach what supports it; stop.
Personal data you were not asked for is the other category. Redact card numbers beyond the last four, unrelated customers' details in a shared screenshot, and anything in an email thread that has nothing to do with this order.
The deadline is your processor's, not the network's
Card networks publish outer limits, and articles quote them. Your processor's deadline is earlier, because they have to forward your response inside that limit, and it is the only one that matters to you. It is shown in your merchant account. On the last day, confirm the cutoff time and the timezone it is stated in — a deadline that reads as a date frequently expires mid-afternoon.
If the date has already passed, it is still worth contacting the processor rather than assuming nothing can be done. Sometimes there is a window; you will not find out by not asking.
Build the packet
The Chargeback Evidence Packet Builder puts the table above into a checklist that changes with the reason you pick, flags which core records you are missing, does the deadline arithmetic, and writes a factual response draft you can edit. It runs entirely in your browser — order details and notes are never uploaded — and it is free with no account.