I'm sure some of you know this already, but at a new online merchant, I was pretty steamed when I found out.

Apparently, with online transactions, when a customer states that they did not order an item, American Express will immediately chargeback that amount, with no questions asked. They will also not allow the merchant to provide proof of delivery or anything!

That's it.. the end of the story. I was shocked at how nonchalant they were when I questioned the logic of this policy. "Screw the merchants big time," that is the policy.

So CALLING ALL AMERICAN EXPRESS CARD HOLDERS>>>>>>

I guess we now have free reign to charge em up, and then say we never ordered the stuff! FREEEE, FREE, FREE!

Needless to say, I will NOT be accepting American Express online. As a matter of fact, I'm considering dropping Amex from my brick and mortar stores too. Yes, I may loose a little business because of it, but I WILL NOT cater to corporate stupidity or American Express' imperialistic attitude.

I agree with you 100%.

You would not believe how many times i have seen people burned.

If your business doesn't cater to businesses, i would not take this card just for that reason.

They are the WORST when it comes to fairness to merchants...grrrr


Steph

I recently got my first "potential chargeback" and it was from AmEx. A customer was questioning the charge from my store. I got a nice letter from AmEx saying that, and telling me what to send them to deal with it.

I pulled the order copy, shipping confirmation, etc., and mailed it right off (someone on this forum had said DON'T WAIT AROUND FOR THIS). Well, I got a nice letter back saying they were happy with my documentation and were waiting to hear from the customer.

Then I got a nice letter saying the issue had been resolved and everybody was happy. No chargeback, no grumbling nasty customer phone calls. I guess the customer just didn't remember the purchase, and AmEx gave me the chance to show the documentation.

One thing I need to do is add my 888 number so that it appears on customer statements. I would rather they call me first than contact their CC company. Anybody know how to do this?

Tony:

With Visa, MasterCard and Discover, our phone number always appeared on customer's statements, so we rarely got any chargeback inquiries on charges. With AE, we would get three or four a month. AE always gave us plenty of opportunity to respond to chargeback requests, and all were resolved peacefully, and to our satisfaction.

After many, many months of arguing with them, I finally got a customer service rep who "promised" that she would make sure our phone number appeared on customer statements. I think it may have worked because we get more phone inquiries and fewer chargeback requests.

The point is, I haven't found their policies to be any diffent than Visa/MasterCard's policies. Maybe they do take the money out right away, I don't know about that, but I think that if it's resolved then you get the money back right away as well.

Patti

I just got off the phone with AMEX and they are saying the exact opposite.

If a customer flat out denies he ordered the product, AMEX say's the merchant will lose only if...

A. They cannot provide documentation of delivery (UPS, FedEx etc)
B. If the merchant is on "Full Fraud Recourse". Which is, if a merchant was getting alot of fraud "Full Fraud Recourse" is the only way they would be able to continue accepting AMEX cards. Therefore a merchant who was put on "FFR" would automatically lose every chargbeck challenge.

I don't get alot of AMEX orders anyway, so I think I'll just keep it for now.

Let me clarify what I am referring to.

According to Amex, if a customer states that they NEVER ORDERED the item when contacting Amex, they will immediately remove the money from your account, without giving you any warning, or letting you provide documentation. Even if you provide proof of delivery to Amex, it wouldn't matter.

This is different that someone simply inquiring about a charge.

So, in other words, if you have a customer who decides they want an expensive item for free, all they have to do is call Amex and say the never ordered it. PERIOD.

Oh yes.... Amex does do an investigation, but only internally regarding how often that particular customer states that there have been fraudulent charges on their account. If it is a pattern, they may close that cardmember's account. But, the merchant still WILL NOT get their money, EVER.

I got to the bottom of this issue.

I should check my blood pressure... I can feel the heat radiating from my body as I calm down!

The "supervisor" that I talked to on more than on occasion was horribly mistaken..... what a surprise! (Actually, I think she just wasn't doing her job, but what else is new.)

The 3rd supervisor up was able to solve the situation, but only after I cancelled my account after having been given VERY BAD information. Apparently, someone had tagged my online business as "home based." This is what placed me on the Full Fraud Recourse Program.

After she realized that I had three "storefronts" that have been in business for over 7 years, she even sighed herself! She profusely apologized for the incorrect information. My problem, was that the first supervisor with whom I spoke with never even bothered to look at my application to see WHY I was placed on FFR to begin with. She just said "all internet based businesses are on the FFR program;" and she said it more than once, on two different phone calls.

I told the 3rd supervisor to let "Ms. Fry" know that I would definitely be writing that letter she invited me to write to express my objection to the policy. I'm sure the heads of that department will be quite pleased to know that I cancelled my account solely based on her repeated bad information.

The 3rd supervisor informed me (with her tail between her legs) that could reinstate my account immediately. I told her I would wait until after I received a response from American Express to decide if I wanted to do business with them.

As of now, they will be lucky to keep the business they already have. And, they have A LOT.

Good Grief!

Tony -

I'm glad that you finally got the correct information. You had me worried. I thought they might have changed their policies.

Too bad they gave you the run-around in the first place.

I hope they give you the number of a knowledgeable rep you can speak with personally if you ever have problems again.

Patti

Way to go Tony! Stand your ground!...and let us know how it turns out.

Glad to hear you finally got through to someone who knew what they were talking about.

I worked my company's customer service call center for 8 years and, well, it's a crap-shoot if you're going to get someone who is knowledgeable or not. It doesn't really matter if the person has the title of supervisor either. Some of the supervisors in the call center where I work are, uh-hum, not exactly the sharpest tools let's say.

I wonder how you know if you are on the Full Fraud Recourse" program? I have been taking AmExp for a couple of years and have never had a chargeback from them. But we are an internet business only so would we be in that program?

No. You would be notified if they we're putting your company on Full Fraud Recourse. From what I was told, it's only for merchants who process a "certain percentage" of fraudulent orders.

I am totally speculating here, but maybe they automatically put all *new* Internet businesses on that program - dunno. After a certain period where they can reevaluate you, you are removed? With three storefronts in addition to your online store, I can understand your blood pressure rise, fer sure!

I've been accepting cc's online since 1999 (my first website is a horse classifieds ads site, not a store) so I do hope that by now, they think I'm cool to continue to work with.

Patty, how did you get your phone number on statements? Call them each directly (Visa, MC, Amex, Discover) or does your merchant account do it for you. This is one of those things I keep meaning to do, and never get around to it. The transaction I referred to happened in July, and it was my very first all time ever potentially disputed charge.

Hello Everyone,

American Express is known for being a "consumer" card. Meaning, merchants are not their main customer, the card holder is. If someone calls and denies a sale, they will immediately take the money out and you will be lucky if you get it back.

Here is some advice, having your telephone number on your Amex statement will help. Hopefully your customer will call your number if they have a question on a charge instead of first calling Amex. I have also heard of companies calling Amex customers after the item has been shipped, just to make sure the customer is happy. It has worked for several of our merchants. Also, It can depend entirely depend upon who takes your call at Amex in their risk department. I hate to say this, but you can get different answers to questions from different customer service reps over their.

I have heard rumblings about Amex changing their chargeback policies. If they do, I will let everyone know.

I hope this helps,
Julie