Policy last updated: July 15, 2024
Contents
- Disputes Process Overview
- Dispute Reasons
- Types of Merchant Customer Disputes
- Investigating disputes
- Resolution
Disputes Process Overview
When a customer encounters issues with a purchase and has been unable to reach the merchant to resolve their issue directly, they may submit a dispute through Affirm. In these instances, Affirm will step in to review evidence and determine if the merchant or customer is responsible for repayment of the underlying financial instrument that funded the purchase.
The resolution process is as follows:
- As driven by a regulatory change taking effect July 2024, customers may open a dispute any time after shopping with you and are not limited to a post-purchase deadline. Customers are not responsible for making payments while the dispute is open, and Affirm withholds the disputed amount until the dispute is resolved.
- The merchant will be notified of the dispute via email and guided with relevant instructions to respond. The email notification will specify the deadline by which you must respond. Typically, you have 15 days from when you are notified of the dispute, but reminders will also be sent 7 days and 1 day before the due date.
Affirm will review the evidence provided by all parties and determine if the merchant or customer is responsible for repayment of the underlying financial instrument. The adjudication outcome will be communicated to both the customer and the merchant within 15 calendar days of evidence collection. Card network processes may differ from this policy.
Dispute Reasons
Customers may initiate a dispute for various reasons. The dispute reason will be listed in the email notice you receive and may include the following:
| Dispute reason | Description |
| Product not received | The customer claims they have not received a product they purchased from you. |
| Product unacceptable | The customer claims that a product they received is incorrect, damaged, or doesn’t meet the listed product description. |
| Cancelation or return not processed | The customer claims that they were charged for a product or service they canceled or returned in a manner consistent with the merchant’s stated refund and return policy in effect at the time of the customer’s purchase. |
| Incorrect charge | The customer claims that they were charged an incorrect amount. |
| Duplicate charge | The customer claims they were charged multiple times for an item or an order. |
Please note that evidence is no longer required of the customer for purchases never delivered or purchases delivered later than promised.
Merchant Evidence Examples
The table below illustrates common examples of evidence that a merchant may share to counter a customer dispute.
| Dispute reason | Examples of merchant rebuttal evidence |
| Product not received |
|
| Product unacceptable |
|
| Cancelation or return not processed |
|
| Incorrect charge |
|
| Duplicate charge |
|
| Other |
|
Resolution
Affirm will resolve all disputes in favor of the party that best substantiates their claim(s). If Affirm resolves a dispute in favor of the merchant, the merchant will not be liable for any amount of principal or interest related to the disputed transaction. Any funds withheld related to the disputed transaction will be released.
As applicable to U.S. resolutions: If Affirm resolves a dispute in favor of the customer: Affirm will refund the disputed amount to the customer and the merchant will reimburse Affirm for such amount. In such an event, the merchant will pay a $15 dispute fee (“Dispute Fee”) to Affirm. The dispute fee may be collected, at Affirm’s discretion, either via (i) debit from merchant’s bank account; (ii) invoice to merchant (which invoices are payable 30 days after receipt thereof); or (iii) deduction from future Payouts due under the Agreement. For the avoidance of doubt, merchant authorizes Affirm, its Affiliate, or its bank partner(s), and will ensure that Affirm, its Affiliate, and/or its bank partner(s) are authorized by the bank holder of the applicable Bank Account, to debit the applicable Bank Account for the Dispute Fee. Any amount under this Section that Affirm is unable to collect or merchant otherwise fails to pay in accordance with this Agreement will be considered past due, and merchant will incur an interest charge on the aggregate outstanding Past Due Amounts for each month such amounts are past due equal to the lesser of (a) 1.50%, or (b) the maximum amount permitted by Applicable Law. Notwithstanding anything to the contrary in the Agreement, including any specific terms relating to refundability of merchant’s other fees payable under the Agreement, any Dispute Fee or other Fees that were charged for the applicable disputed purchase will be non-refundable.
For more information on our disputes process, feel free to visit the following article: Webform Disputes.
FAQs
What happens when a dispute is adjudicated in my favor?
If Affirm resolves a dispute in your favor, you will not be liable for any amount (of principal or interest) related to the disputed transaction. Any funds withheld related to the disputed transaction will be released.
What happens when a dispute is adjudicated in favor of my customer?
If a dispute is resolved in favor of your customer, Affirm will refund the disputed amount to the customer. In such an event, the merchant will be responsible for reimbursing Affirm for the amount refunded.
Can I update the amount I refunded my customer?
Please note that processed refunds are not reversible. Be sure to confirm the refund amount before submitting. If you would like help refunding your customer an amount other than what is being disputed, please contact us at resolutions@affirm.com.
How can I view the evidence provided by the customer?
After navigating to the Dispute Detail Page, click on the file(s) under the Attachments section which will trigger a download to your device.
How long do I have to respond to a dispute?
The email notification and Disputes Detail Page will specify the deadline by which you must respond. Typically, you have 15 days from when you are notified of the dispute, but reminders will also be sent 7 days and 1 day before the due date.
Once I submit evidence, when can I expect to hear back?
Affirm will review the case and communicate our resolution decision via email within 15 days of receiving evidence from you and the customer. You can also view the adjudication decision in your Disputes Dashboard under the Status column or in the individual Dispute Details Page.
Why am I seeing a dispute initiated for a purchase made over 60 days ago?
To comply with regulatory requirements, as of July 2024, customers are able to initiate a dispute even if they made a purchase with you over 60 days ago.
Why might a dispute omit customer evidence?
After navigating to the webform, you are able to click each line item under the Overview > Customer Evidence section which will trigger a download to your device. Please note, not all cases will include information uploaded by customers but may only provide an explanation of the dispute.
Why are there disputes listed in my Settlements Report that I did not receive email communications for?
Affirm only sends you a dispute initiation notice when action is required from you. As a result, you may see disputes populating in your report while we gather more information from your customer after they initiate the dispute and before we request your response.
I do not agree with the decision made by Affirm regarding a dispute, what should I do?
Please note that adjudication decisions made by Affirm are final.
For questions or issues related to a specific dispute, please reach out to resolutions@affirm.com or take a look at related articles: Webform Disputes & Merchant Portal Disputes.