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Another thing that feels uniquely-US to me is chargebacks. I don't even know what's the process for initiating one in Russia. I once wanted to do that (forgot t

Another thing that feels uniquely-US to me is chargebacks. I don't even know what's the process for initiating one in Russia. I once wanted to do that (forgot to disable auto-payment for internet in the apartment I rented and since moved from), called my bank, they told me that there's nothing they could do and I have to talk to the merchant to get a refund. But many comments here imply that chargeback is almost as easy as clicking a button or asking nicely. How's that?

ceejayoz 5y ago
The US has specific legal rights to a chargeback. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Truth_in_Lending_Act https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Truth_in_Lending_Act "I forgot to disable automatic billing" probably wouldn't be a valid chargeback, though.
_rpd 5y ago
It makes it easy to comply with the Fair Credit Billing Act: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fair_Credit_Billing_Act https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fair_Credit_Billing_Act
klodolph 5y ago
In the US, you can't click a button to make a chargeback happen. People are eliding some of the steps or being a bit sloppy with the terminology. A chargeback is something that the bank (or rather, the credit card issuer) does to merchants. You can log in to your credit card account, click on a transaction, and open a dispute. You have to choose a reason for the dispute. The reason has to be something like, "I was charged for a product, but never received the product." This just starts the process. The end result may be a chargeback to the merchant.
NikolaNovak 5y ago
The overall theme here is difference between bank, and visa/Mastercard. If I have a legitimate charge on my debit/chequing account, I too don't know how to reverse it directly through bank. But if I pay with visa or Mastercard (actual credit cards), I call the toll free number or go to website and start process and go through it. Partially it's that highbibterest rates pay for policies and systems and options and insurance. Partially that credit card fraud is common so systems must be easy for consumer. E.g. I had my credit card used by somebody else probably 5 to 6 times over 15 years. They'd call me when they detect fraud,we'd go through list of transactions, and based on quick word over phone they'd cancel all transactions that weren't mine. It's a very different process than banking.
- klodolph 5y ago
  Debit cards have some of the same protections as credit cards. You can dispute a debit charge.
knome 5y ago
>But many comments here imply that chargeback is almost as easy as clicking a button or asking nicely. How's that? I can log into my banks website and, selecting any payment transaction within the chargeback period, initiate a chargeback claim by just clicking a few buttons.
haneefmubarak 5y ago
You hop on the phone with the bank and initiate a dispute. They give the merchant a chance to prove that you specifically did indeed make the purchase and/or receive a hard product. If they can't, the money is refunded to your account. Of course, if you keep on charging back, eventually your bank will give you a polite call to let you know that they're closing out your account. This provides the incentive to be relatively honest about charge backs in addition to the fact that a false charge back is a criminal offense (fraud).
mdoms 5y ago
Yeah I kept reading about chargebacks in USA so I tried to initiate one on a Visa card in New Zealand and it was a 6-week arduous process requiring a shitload of documentation. It didn't seem worth it for my purposes.

ceejayoz 5y ago

The US has specific legal rights to a chargeback. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Truth_in_Lending_Act https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Truth_in_Lending_Act "I forgot to disable automatic billing" probably wouldn't be a valid chargeback, though.

_rpd 5y ago

It makes it easy to comply with the Fair Credit Billing Act: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fair_Credit_Billing_Act https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fair_Credit_Billing_Act

klodolph 5y ago

In the US, you can't click a button to make a chargeback happen. People are eliding some of the steps or being a bit sloppy with the terminology. A chargeback is something that the bank (or rather, the credit card issuer) does to merchants. You can log in to your credit card account, click on a transaction, and open a dispute. You have to choose a reason for the dispute. The reason has to be something like, "I was charged for a product, but never received the product." This just starts the process. The end result may be a chargeback to the merchant.

NikolaNovak 5y ago

The overall theme here is difference between bank, and visa/Mastercard. If I have a legitimate charge on my debit/chequing account, I too don't know how to reverse it directly through bank. But if I pay with visa or Mastercard (actual credit cards), I call the toll free number or go to website and start process and go through it. Partially it's that highbibterest rates pay for policies and systems and options and insurance. Partially that credit card fraud is common so systems must be easy for consumer. E.g. I had my credit card used by somebody else probably 5 to 6 times over 15 years. They'd call me when they detect fraud,we'd go through list of transactions, and based on quick word over phone they'd cancel all transactions that weren't mine. It's a very different process than banking.

klodolph 5y ago
Debit cards have some of the same protections as credit cards. You can dispute a debit charge.

knome 5y ago

>But many comments here imply that chargeback is almost as easy as clicking a button or asking nicely. How's that? I can log into my banks website and, selecting any payment transaction within the chargeback period, initiate a chargeback claim by just clicking a few buttons.

haneefmubarak 5y ago

You hop on the phone with the bank and initiate a dispute. They give the merchant a chance to prove that you specifically did indeed make the purchase and/or receive a hard product. If they can't, the money is refunded to your account. Of course, if you keep on charging back, eventually your bank will give you a polite call to let you know that they're closing out your account. This provides the incentive to be relatively honest about charge backs in addition to the fact that a false charge back is a criminal offense (fraud).

mdoms 5y ago

Yeah I kept reading about chargebacks in USA so I tried to initiate one on a Visa card in New Zealand and it was a 6-week arduous process requiring a shitload of documentation. It didn't seem worth it for my purposes.