RESOLVING BILLING DISPUTES ON YOUR CREDIT CARD BILL

Provided by MBNA America Bank N.A.

One of the benefits of paying for goods and services with a credit card is having the ability, under certain circumstances, to dispute a charge. If you're not satisfied with a product or service, and the merchant is willing to resolve it, you can contact your credit card company and file a dispute in the hope of having the charge credited back to your account.

With most credit card banks, the experience of initiating a billing dispute by phone can be complicated. Some have a billing disputes area with dedicated telephone units specifically designed to respond to and resolve billing disputes.

There are several reasons you may dispute a charge:

• you do not recognize the charge;
  
  
• you cancelled a recurring charge;
  
  
• you notice a duplicate transaction;
  
  
• you did not receive or have returned merchandise and are still being charged; or
  
  
• you are unhappy with the quality of a merchant's service.

It's important to keep in mind the following things that you can do to prevent billing disputes:

• Never give out your credit card number unless you are making a purchase.
  
  
• Always ask for a merchant's cancellation or return policy before you make a purchase. Most credit card issuers cannot override any merchant's return and/or cancellation policies.
  
  
• Always keep your receipts and compare them to charges on your statement. Sometimes, merchants bill from different cities and states or under an unusual description, but it may turn out that you did, in fact, make that purchase.
  
  
• When canceling a hotel reservation always get a cancellation number and cancel within the time frame given by the hotel. For example, some hotels require that you must cancel seven days in advance of your arrival.

Also, follow these guidelines in initiating a billing dispute:

• Attempt to work with the merchant first. Call the number on the statement next to the charge (when available) to identify an unusual charge. This is the quickest way to resolve a billing dispute, as most merchants want to help customers so they will shop with them again.
  
  
• You usually have a limited time from the mailing date of your statement to file a dispute with your credit card company.

© 2015 TLC Magazine Online, Inc.