Disputes

A disputed transaction is any charge on your MBNA account statement from a merchant that you believe is not valid. Examples of disputed transactions can include (but are not limited to)

• Not as described/defective goods or services
  
• Counterfeit goods
  
• Missing refunds
  
• Cancelled automatic bill payments
  
• Services/products not received (failing to receive ordered products)
  
• Multiple merchant disputes
  

Time is crucial when attempting to dispute a charge. You must notify MBNA of the disputed transaction within 60 days after the Statement Closing Date. If you fail to notify MBNA within this time frame, we may not be able to investigate the disputed charge.

If you have questions about bank charges click here or for more information on potential fraudulent transactions click here.

Have you dealt with this merchant before?

Sometimes merchants such as hotels or car rental companies apply delayed or amended charges for their services.

Don’t recognize the merchant name?

Many merchants use other companies to collect payments made online. Therefore, the name appearing on your statement may in fact be that of a third-party online payment provider collecting payments on behalf of the merchant you made your payment to. 

Is the date unfamiliar? (Is there a discrepancy in the date of the transaction posted to your statement?)

Transactions may be posted a few days late. For example, some merchants process transactions on a periodic basis (i.e., not in real-time or on a daily basis) or will not charge you until they are ready to send the product or render the service.

Is the location unfamiliar? (Is there a discrepancy in the location of the transaction posted to your statement?)

Some merchants, like airlines and parking companies, have processing centres in other cities.

Talk to the authorized user.

If you have any authorized users on your account, their purchases will appear on your account statement. Ask any authorized users on your account whether they recognize the disputed transaction.

Talk to the merchant.

The easiest way to resolve a disputed transaction is to talk to the merchant directly. Speak to a sales clerk or store manager and provide them with receipts and any other documentation you have. Often, they can correct the mistake and process a refund.

What is a temporary authorization charge?

A temporary authorization charge is a transaction that has been approved but has not yet been officially posted to your account. The value of the transaction has been deducted from your available credit limit. Normally, a temporary authorization charge converts into a posted transaction. However, a temporary authorization charge may expire if the merchant does not complete the transaction.

Why do I see a temporary charge for $1.00 in online banking?

This $1.00 charge is called a verification charge. These occur when you provide your credit card account number to a merchant for a purchase or automatic billing. The verification charge is how the merchant ensures the credit card is active and in your name. This is because the only way for the merchant to complete a validation charge is to add a monetary value of approximately $1.00 to your account.

Once MBNA has authorized this charge to validate your card, you will see the temporary authorization in the online banking account snapshot tab (temporary authorizations are not displayed on paper statements).  Since this is only a verification charge, it will not settle to your account, so you will not be charged. After a few business days, the verification charge will be removed and convert over to the actual amount of your transaction charged to the account. Once the verification is completed, if the verification charge has not changed to the correct amount of your transaction, you can dispute the transaction in question.

Why do I see a charge for $250 from a gas station in online banking?

When using pay-at-the-pump services at a gas station, the gas company temporarily authorizes your credit card up to $250 to ensure that your card is valid, and to also ensure that you have sufficient credit available. This charge will be changed to the actual amount you spend at the gas station when the transaction settles to your account. This usually occurs within 3-5 business days.

Unrecognized car rental charges.

Extra charges on your bill may include extra mileage, gas, damages, late returns, car insurance, child seating, toll road or highway usage and traffic violations/tickets. Usually‚ vouchers only cover the cost of the car rental itself, not insurance‚ gas or any other service charges that may apply. In this instance‚ these costs may have been charged to your credit card.

Do you have an anti-virus program or online subscription that is renewed automatically by the service provider?

If this is the case‚ the charge in question could be your anti-virus software company or a third-party online payment provider that they use to process the online payments for your subscription.

Did you recently sign up for a trial offer?

If you sign up for a trial offer, make sure that you read the terms and conditions. Sometimes trial offers automatically enroll participants into paid monthly subscriptions unless they are cancelled before the identified date.

A Bank charge is a charge on your account statement that is not from a merchant. Examples of Bank charges can include (but are not limited to):

• Standard or promotional interest rate charges
• Account fees (Non-Sufficient Funds (NSF) fees, over credit limit fees, annual fees)
• Transaction fees (balance transfer fees)

If you have any questions or inquiries regarding a Bank charge on your account statement, please contact MBNA customer service at 1-888-876-6262, Monday to Sunday 7 a.m. to 12 a.m. EST.

If you find a transaction from a merchant with whom you did not conduct any business, or to whom you (or a person authorized by you) did not provide your credit card information, then the charge could be fraudulent. Credit card fraud can occur when someone makes an unauthorized charge with your account, which may happen whether or not your card is in your possession, or if it has been lost or stolen. In the event that you have detected an unauthorized transaction on your account, please call MBNA Fraud immediately at 1-800-379-2744.  For more information about the measures we take to protect your account, as well as the steps you can take to safeguard yourself, visit our Credit Card Security webpage.

If your attempts to resolve your transaction dispute with the merchant have been unsuccessful, please download the Transaction Dispute form here and send it to us so we can investigate on your behalf.  The form will outline all instructions, including where to send the form. Time is crucial when attempting to dispute a charge. You must notify MBNA of the disputed transaction within 60 days after the Statement Closing Date. If you fail to notify MBNA within this time frame, we may not be able to investigate the charge.

Completing the online Transaction Dispute form and sending it to MBNA for processing facilitates a better customer experience.  However, if you are unable to print the online form and send it to us, please contact the MBNA Disputes department at 1-866-601-7203 Monday to Friday between 8AM and 7PM E.T. with the transaction details, including the transaction date, description of the transaction and the date of the statement.

If you have questions regarding a merchant transaction or any product or service acquired through the use of your account, before contacting us you must attempt to settle the problem or dispute directly with the merchant. We are not responsible for any problems or disputes you may have with a merchant or in respect of a merchant not honouring or accepting any credit device. However, you may contact us to discuss disputes you may have with a merchant or with us with respect to a transaction or if you need more information about a transaction on your statement. We are not obliged to take any action for merchant disputes unless required to do so by law.

Do I have to send written details to help with my dispute?

To ensure we have all required information to investigate your transaction dispute on your behalf, it is important that we have all the relevant information to investigate your claim. This will also minimize additional delays in the dispute process so that we may work to resolve the dispute as quickly as possible for you. Be sure to document your interaction with the merchant in respect of reporting your disputed transaction with them, and include important details such as the date, time, the subject of the conversation, a reference number (if available) and any email correspondence.  This information will be important in the investigation of the dispute.

If you decide to contact us, write us on a separate sheet (or use a copy of the form provided on your statement) at the following address:

MBNA
P.O. Box 9614
Ottawa ON
K1G 6E6

Or fax to 1-877-839-6262

Do not send the notice on or with your payment. We must hear from you no later than 60 days after the statement closing date of the first account statement on which the transaction or suspected error appeared. You can telephone us, but doing so will not preserve your rights. In your letter, provide all of the following information

• Your name and account number
  
• The dollar amount of the suspected error
  
• The posting date of the transaction in question
  
• The merchant name
  
• A description of the error and an explanation, if you can, of why you believe there is an error. If you need more information, describe the item you are not sure about
  

Merchant charge-backs are subject to MasterCard Rules and Regulations. Even if you have problems or disputes with a merchant, you are still responsible for the total amount owing on your account (which includes the disputed transaction(s)) and for making your Minimum Payments on time as required under this Account Agreement. If a merchant gives you a refund and we receive a credit voucher from the merchant, we will deduct the amount of the credit voucher from the amount you owe on your account. If we agree to credit your account in respect of a merchant dispute, you agree that your rights and claims with respect to the credit are automatically assigned to us. In certain situations, you may be required to sign additional documentation before we can credit your account.

Continue to make your payments.

It will likely take MBNA several weeks to investigate your dispute. While you wait, you are required to continue to pay at least your Minimum Payment Due set out on your credit card statements as usual.  Your account will continue to accrue interest as set out in your Account Agreement during this time. If the dispute is successful, you will be refunded the appropriate amounts.

What happens after a dispute investigation is started?

First, we will contact the merchant on your behalf. The merchant may either: 

• Acknowledge the error and refund your money – we will contact you by letter if this is the case or you may see the refund on your statement.
  
• Provide us with proof and information regarding the transaction – in this case we will provide the supporting documents to you for your review.
  

Please note that we are obliged to give merchants 45 days to respond to an inquiry/request. 

How long does it take to investigate and resolve a transaction dispute?

The time required for a complete resolution of a disputed transaction may vary, ranging from a couple of days to several weeks. The time for resolution will depend, in part, on the information provided in your response and how quickly you respond to our requests. Rest assured that we always work to resolve your dispute as quickly as possible.

How does a temporary credit/suspension of charge work?

You may see a suspended amount/credit or similar notation on your account statement while an inquiry is being investigated. This means that we will not request payment for the amount in question until the dispute investigation is closed. Depending on the result of the investigation‚ the temporary or suspended credit amount will be:

• Made permanent if the merchant authorizes a refund
  
• Removed when the merchant credit appears on your account
  
• Removed‚ if it turns out that the charge was valid; you will be required to pay the disputed amount.
  

Will I receive a credit each time I dispute a transaction?

MBNA cannot guarantee that the final outcome of a dispute investigation will be in your favour and result in a refund. Depending on several factors, including whether you initiate the dispute in a timely manner, the availability of required documentation, and if merchant evidence proves the charge is valid, you may not receive a credit for the disputed transaction. While every case is unique, MBNA aims to credit your account for charges that are not valid in the shortest possible time. In most cases where a charge is determined not to be valid, a credit can appear as quickly as on your next account statement.

You must notify MBNA within 60 days after the Statement Closing Date of the account statement on which the transaction appears and ensure that all documentation requested is complete and returned promptly, as time is crucial when attempting to dispute an invalid charge.

Can I stop a merchant from billing my account?

We cannot prevent a single merchant from billing your account. We advise that you to contact the merchant if you do not want them to bill your account. If the merchant is unable or unwilling to grant your request, you may certainly open a dispute file with us. To do so, please fill out our Transaction Dispute form within 60 days after the Statement Closing Date of the account statement on which the transaction appears.  Please download our Transaction Dispute form here and send it to us so we can investigate on your behalf.

Credit card issuers are not permitted to prevent a single merchant, with whom you've entered into an agreement, from billing the account.  We understand the inconvenience this causes, but the proper process, to ensure a merchant stops billing your account, involves contacting each individual merchant to retract your authorization to bill the account. We additionally suggest you take note and save information about dates and times you've contacted the merchant. If they continue billing the account after you have taken this step, you will have grounds to dispute the transaction, and then we will be able to investigate.

If I close my credit card, will it stop merchants from billing my credit card?

Closing or changing your credit card account number will not prevent a merchant from charging the card as we cannot intervene in existing contracts you have with specific merchants. Your best course of action is to attempt to resolve your dispute with the merchant directly.  If your attempts to resolve your transaction dispute with the merchant have been unsuccessful, please download the Transaction Dispute form here and send it to us so we can investigate on your behalf.

Download PDF

Download the Transaction Dispute form here