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Dispute classification

Pega Smart Dispute™ Agentic Automation (SDAA) supports end-to-end dispute processing by using the real-time interfaces. The card networks classify disputes into specific types which helps issuer banks or networks provide more accurate dispute resolutions to enhance customer service. A dispute is mapped to a dispute category and then to its sub-category based on the scenario of the dispute. Each dispute category has time constraints on it based on the age of the transaction or when the merchandise / service was or was to be received and so on. Some dispute categories have documentation requirements. All these details on dispute sub-categories are available in the chargeback documentation periodically released by card networks.

The dispute categories use reason codes that are assigned to each dispute by the card issuer or the card network. These codes indicate the cause and the status of the dispute and help the parties involved resolve it.

Visa dispute categories and subcategories

The dispute reasons supported by Visa consist of the four following categories:

  • Fraud: Disputes that involve unauthorized or fraudulent transactions, such as stolen cards, counterfeit cards, identity theft, or phishing. Cardholders claim that they did not authorize or participate in the transaction and request a chargeback.
  • Authorization issues: Disputes that arise from errors or mistakes in the authorization process, such as expired cards, invalid cards, and declined transactions. Cardholders claim that the transaction was not properly authorized.
  • Processing errors: Disputes that stem from discrepancies or errors in the transaction amount, date, currency, location or duplicate transactions. Cardholders claim that they received a charge for a different amount than what they agreed to pay or received a charge in a different currency or at a different location than what they expected or that they were charged more than once for the same transaction.
  • Consumer disputes: Disputes that involve problems with the product or service that the cardholder purchased from the merchant, such as defective goods, damaged goods, non-delivery, late delivery, or cancellation. Cardholders claim that they did not receive what they paid for or that they were not satisfied with the quality or performance of the product or service. Consumer disputes also include credit issues. Credit issues are disputes that relate to refunds, credits, or adjustments that the cardholder requested from the merchant but did not receive or did not receive correctly. Cardholders claim that they returned the product or canceled the service but did not receive a full or partial refund or that they received a credit or adjustment, but it did not apply to their account.

The dispute category and its subcategories are shown in the following table:

Dispute category

Dispute subcategory

10 - Fraud

10.1 – EMV Liability Shift Counterfeit

10.2 – EMV Liability Shift Non-Counterfeit

10.3 – Card Present Environment

10.4 – Card Absent Environment

10.5 – Visa Fraud Monitoring Program

11 - Authorization

11.1 – Card Recovery Bulletin

11.2 – Declined Authorization

11.3 – No Authorization/Late Presentment

12 – Processing Errors

12.2 – Incorrect Transaction Code

12.3 – Incorrect Currency

12.4 – Incorrect Account Number

12.5 – Incorrect Amount

12.6.1 – Duplicate Processing

12.6.2 – Paid by Other Means

12.7 – Invalid Data

13 – Consumer Disputes

13.1 – Merchandise/Services Not Received

13.2 – Cancelled Recurring Transaction

13.3 – Not as Described/Defective

13.4 – Counterfeit Merchandise

13.5 - Misrepresentation

13.6 – Credit Not Processed

13.7 – Cancelled Merchandise/Services

13.8 – Original Credit Not Accepted

13.9 – Non-Receipt of Cash/Load

Mastercard reason codes

Dispute categories in Mastercard are represented by two- or four-character codes referred to as reason codes. The reason codes, their descriptions, and their subcategories supported by Mastercard are shown in the following table:

Reason Code

Description

Subcategories

4808

Authorization-related Chargeback

Required Authorization Not Obtained

Expired Chargeback Protection Period

Stand-in or X-Code Approval after Issuer Decline

CAT 3 Devices

Transit First Ride Risk (FRR) Claims

4834

Point-of-Interaction Error

Cardholder Debited More than Once for the Same Goods or Services

Transaction Amount Differs

Cash was not properly provided from either a Purchase with Cash Back transaction or a Cash Back transaction without an Accompanying Purchase

ATM Funds Not Dispensed

Charges for Loss, Theft, or Damages

Currency Errors

Merchant Refund Correcting Error Resulted in Cardholder Currency Exchange Loss

Improper Merchant Surcharge

Unreasonable Amount

4837

No Cardholder Authorization

 

4849

Questionable Merchant Activity

 

4850

Installment Billing Dispute

 

4853

Cardholder Dispute Chargeback

Goods or Services Were Either Not as Described or Defective

Goods or Services Not Provided

Travel/Entertainment Services Not Provided/Not as Described and Merchant Voucher Issued

Failed Travel Merchant-Intra-EEA and Domestic European Transactions Only

Travel/Entertainment Services

Cancelled/Returned and a Refund was Not Processed

Digital Goods Purchase of USD/EUR 25 or Less
Refund Not Processed

Counterfeit Goods

Cardholder Dispute of a Recurring Transaction

Issuer Dispute of a Recurring Transaction
Addendum Dispute

"No-Show” Hotel Charge

Transaction Did Not Complete

Timeshares

Refund Posted as a Purchase

4854

Cardholder Dispute-Not Elsewhere Classified

 

4870

Chip Liability Shift

 

4871

Chip Liability Shift-Lost/Stolen/Never Received Issue (NRI) Fraud

 

Note: Mastercard does not give any codes to subcategories, but SDAA uses codes like 4853-1 Goods or Services Were Either Not as Described or Defective for internal reference for functional reasons.

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