Picture this: A customer walks into your store, makes a purchase, and leaves happy. Six months later, you get hit with a chargeback notification. Your first thought? "Can they really do that after all this time?" The short answer is yes, and the timeline might surprise you.
Understanding how long customers can do a chargeback isn't just about knowing deadlines. It's about protecting your business with the right documentation strategy. Most merchants find out the hard way that their record-keeping habits aren't cutting it when they lose a winnable dispute because they deleted crucial evidence too soon.
The Basic Chargeback Time Frame by Card Network
Every card network has its own rules about how long cardholders can file chargebacks. Visa gives customers 120 days from the transaction date for most dispute reasons. Mastercard extends that to 120 days from when the cardholder expected to receive goods or services. American Express takes it further with 120 days from when the cardholder discovered the problem, which can stretch up to 540 days from the original transaction.
Discover follows similar patterns to Visa with 120 days for most disputes. But here's where it gets tricky. Special circumstances can extend these deadlines significantly. If a merchant goes out of business, fails to deliver goods, or if there's suspected fraud, these timeframes can stretch even longer.
Why Merchants Need Extended Record Retention
Knowing how long someone can do a chargeback tells you the minimum time to keep records. But minimum isn't enough. Card networks give merchants only 10 to 20 days to respond to disputes, depending on the network and dispute type. If you're scrambling to find six-month-old receipts in a filing cabinet or deleted email folder, you've already lost.
Smart merchants keep transaction records for at least 18 months. This covers the extended chargeback windows plus gives you breathing room for special circumstances. Digital storage makes this easier than ever. Cloud-based systems can automatically archive transaction data, customer communications, and delivery confirmations without cluttering your active files.
Essential Documents for Your Retention Strategy
Your record retention strategy needs more than just receipts. Start with the basics: transaction records, including authorization codes, amounts, dates, and customer information. Keep all signed receipts or digital signature captures. These prove the customer authorized the charge.
Shipping and delivery confirmations are your best defense against "item not received" claims. Save tracking numbers, delivery signatures, and any photos of delivered packages. For digital goods, keep download logs and IP addresses. Customer communication matters too. Save all emails, chat transcripts, and support tickets. These conversations often contain admissions or agreements that can swing a dispute in your favor.
For subscription services, maintain clear records of terms acceptance, renewal notifications, and cancellation policies. Screenshots of your checkout process showing terms and conditions can prove customers knew what they were agreeing to. Product descriptions and photos from the time of sale help fight "not as described" disputes, especially if you update your catalog regularly.
Building a System That Actually Works
Creating a retention system sounds overwhelming, but it doesn't have to be. Start by centralizing your data. Use a customer relationship management system or payment processor that automatically stores transaction details. Set up automated backups so nothing gets lost if someone accidentally deletes files.
Organize records by date and customer rather than transaction type. When a chargeback hits, you need to pull everything related to that specific customer quickly. Consider using searchable file names that include dates and customer identifiers. This saves precious time when you're racing against response deadlines.
Train your team on documentation standards. Every customer interaction should be logged. Every shipping exception noted. Every return or exchange recorded. Consistency in record-keeping makes or breaks your dispute responses. Random gaps in documentation raise red flags with card networks.
The Real Cost of Poor Record Retention
Losing disputes because of missing documentation costs more than just the transaction amount. You pay chargeback fees ranging from $20 to $100 per dispute. Your chargeback ratio climbs, potentially triggering monitoring programs with higher fees and stricter requirements. Too many chargebacks can even cost you your merchant account.
Beyond the financial hit, poor record retention wastes time. Your team spends hours searching for documents that might not exist. You miss response deadlines because you're still gathering evidence. Customer relationships suffer when you can't quickly reference past interactions or purchases.
Conclusion
Knowing how long customers can do a chargeback shapes your entire approach to record keeping. Those 120-day windows might seem generous until you realize they can extend to 540 days or more in certain situations. Building a retention strategy that accounts for these extended timeframes protects your revenue and saves your sanity when disputes arise. The best time to organize your records isn't when a chargeback arrives. Start building your system today, before the next dispute catches you unprepared.
FAQ: How Long Can You Do a Chargeback?
How long can you do a chargeback with Visa?
Visa cardholders typically have 120 days from the transaction date to file most chargebacks. However, certain dispute reasons like fraud or processing errors may have different timeframes that can extend this deadline.
Can a customer file a chargeback after one year?
Yes, customers can sometimes file chargebacks after one year, especially with American Express. Their policy allows up to 540 days from the transaction date for certain dispute types, particularly when cardholders discover problems long after purchase.
What's the shortest chargeback time frame among card networks?
Most major card networks set 120 days as their standard chargeback timeframe. Discover and Visa typically stick closest to this baseline, though specific dispute reasons can still trigger extensions beyond this period.
How long should merchants keep transaction records?
Merchants should keep transaction records for at least 18 months to cover extended chargeback windows. Some businesses in high-risk industries or with recurring billing models benefit from keeping records for two to three years.
Do digital goods have different chargeback timeframes?
Digital goods follow the same basic chargeback timeframes as physical products. However, the "discovery period" for issues with digital goods can extend the dispute window since problems might not surface immediately after purchase.
Shield Your Revenue with Smarter Chargeback Defense
Chargebacks drain time and money from your business, but Chargeblast stops them at the source. Our prevention tools catch disputes before they happen, while our fighting system handles the ones that slip through. With automated evidence collection and response generation, you'll win more disputes without lifting a finger. Ready to cut chargebacks by up to 99%? Schedule your demo with Chargeblast today and see how much revenue you could be saving.
