Disputing Credit Card Charges - Visa SCB Bank

[Thomas J]

Dealing with banks in Thailand seems to be like trying to nail jello to a wall.  The staff are so uninformed they just make up excuses when they are not familiar with how to do virtually anything.  My fiance has a Credit Card a Visa issued through SCB.  She wishes to dispute a charge.  When going to the branch they just reply oh contact the merchant who sold you the merchandise.  That is the problem, the merchant does not respond.  For someone familiar with credit card and disputing charges specifically with SCB if possible can you be of any assistance in how I should either phrase it, or who to contact who understands the process of disputing credit card charges?  

[JoePai]

I can only reply for BKK Bank but for that I needed to contact the phone number you will find on the back of the card - no good going to a local brance as they cannot do anything

 

Was surprise how helpful they were via the phone !

[Swiss1960]

Don't go to a branch,  contact the call centre, see the phone number on the back of the card.

 

We have SCB cards, had disputes, call centervworks good given the language issues

[Dario]

14 hours ago, Swiss1960 said:

Don't go to a branch,  contact the call centre, see the phone number on the back of the card.

 

We have SCB cards, had disputes, call centervworks good given the language issues

We have Citibank cards, were scammed last Christmas for around 300'000 Baht, all was settled through a person at their  support center. The only way to go.

[Crossy]

Yes to all the above. Call the number on the card.

 

[scorecard]

15 hours ago, JoePai said:

I can only reply for BKK Bank but for that I needed to contact the phone number you will find on the back of the card - no good going to a local brance as they cannot do anything

 

Was surprise how helpful they were via the phone !

Many years back I had several large amounts on my VISA card (issued thru UOB). I called UOB and they reacted quickly and kept in contact and they obviously quickly contacted Visa who also quickly contacted me to get further information, Within a few days VISA advised they had been in contact with the police and the scammer had been charged. At same time UOB advised the charges had been reversed and they shared an amended account by e.mail.

 

Both VISA and UOB reminded me to contact them very quickly if any suspicious items.

 

VISA also mentioned, politely, that if there are 3 disputed charges within a 1 year period each case is investigated using their normal processes but the card holder is also flagged as the possible scammer and is quickly investigated. 

 

 

 

[NoshowJones]

3 hours ago, Crossy said:

Yes to all the above. Call the number on the card.

 

Hi Crossy, can you tell me if the same applies to debit cards?

[natway09]

If anything I find KTC a little overprotective but in saying that twice when the card was hacked they contacted me before I noticed. Great english speaking, very helpful

[Crossy]

4 minutes ago, possum1931 said:

Hi Crossy, can you tell me if the same applies to debit cards?

 

I would say yes, it's always the best starting point.

 

Branch staff are generally clueless when something even remotely out of the ordinary happens (like a farang wanting to open an account).

[NoshowJones]

5 minutes ago, Crossy said:

 

I would say yes, it's always the best starting point.

 

Branch staff are generally clueless when something even remotely out of the ordinary happens (like a farang wanting to open an account).

Thanks, I am booked for a return flight to the UK in Sept, also have my hotel booked, it seems unlikely that flights and entry back into Thailand will be back to normal then and I just wonder if having used my UK bank debit card to pay for it, that it may come in useful if the airline gets difficult about refunds or changing the date.

[Jenkins9039]

Just ring SCB Credit Card division on the back of the card, they usually take a couple of days and then give you an update and a chargeback is commenced, you will need to file some paperwork etc also.... 

 

Have SCB Platinum (actual credit line, not my own pre-deposited funds) since 2012 and have never had any issues with SCB nor when things go wrong, its prompt, and painless.

 

Don't bother with in-store, their job is 'sales-people' and 'account-servicing', not 'credit card dispute'.

 

Oh and in future try and use a in-between merchant, say Paypal, that way, you can charge back through them, if that fails, then you can do through the bank against Paypal.

[taxout]

Chargeback rules on debit cards are usually much less favourable to the cardholder than chargebacks on credit cards. No certainty in any given case, but for things that might disappear before you can use them, like airline flights, it's always safer to pay with a credit card.

[Thomas J]

8 hours ago, possum1931 said:

Hi Crossy, can you tell me if the same applies to debit cards?

possom1931 

 

As a former banker I can tell you that though debit cards are in theory suppose to provide the same level of protection and allow you to contest a charge they typically don't operate as such.  The major difference is that with the credit card it is the bank's money that is being advanced to pay the charge versus a debit card where it is yours.  

If you can, it is always best to use a credit versus a debit card.  

[Paul DS]

8 hours ago, possum1931 said:

Thanks, I am booked for a return flight to the UK in Sept, also have my hotel booked, it seems unlikely that flights and entry back into Thailand will be back to normal then and I just wonder if having used my UK bank debit card to pay for it, that it may come in useful if the airline gets difficult about refunds or changing the date.

In general, you will not have credit card protection on a debit card.  Visa offer protection only on VISA Credit cards. Here is my explanation:

 

Paying by credit card is convenient and it also gives you added legal protection if the company you’re buying from goes bust or doesn’t deliver what it’s promised.

 

You might get some limited protection when paying by debit card, but only  under a voluntary scheme called chargeback. With Debit cards though you don’t generally have other protection.

 

Chargeback isn’t legal protection like section 75 (Credit Card Cover) . It’s an agreement Visa, Mastercard, Maestro and American Express have signed up to.

 

The scheme enables you to claim a refund from your card provider if a purchase doesn’t arrive or is faulty.

It works by the card company trying to claim your money back from the company you’ve paid, by reversing the transaction.

 

There’s usually no minimum spend in order to be covered by chargeback, but time limits apply for making a claim – usually up to 45 days from making the purchase.

Chargeback claims can take some time to process because the card company has to get the money refunded before it can pass it onto you.

 

Most important you need to make a formal complaint to the Debit card issuer and request an acknowledgment.

 

[ThailandRyan]

On 5/14/2020 at 5:12 PM, Swiss1960 said:

Don't go to a branch,  contact the call centre, see the phone number on the back of the card.

 

We have SCB cards, had disputes, call centervworks good given the language issues

SCB has some very good English speakers that can assist you.  I had some problems while in the US and contacted them with no problems....

[samsensam]

 

i have hsbc bank accounts and credit card, even in the uk the branch staff dont/cant deal with credit card issues, helpfully there is a phone in the branch that can be used to talk the the credit card people. therefore suggest your fiance contacts the credit card company, if no helpful phone available in the branch she should simply call the number on the back of the card. easy

[Thomas J]

On 5/15/2020 at 11:26 AM, possum1931 said:

Hi Crossy, can you tell me if the same applies to debit cards?

Possum1931

 

https://www.chargebackgurus.com/blog/know-your-chargeback-dispute-types-debit-card-vs.-credit-card

[treetops]

On 5/15/2020 at 2:46 PM, Paul DS said:

In general, you will not have credit card protection on a debit card.  Visa offer protection only on VISA Credit cards. Here is my explanation:

 

Paying by credit card is convenient and it also gives you added legal protection if the company you’re buying from goes bust or doesn’t deliver what it’s promised.

 

You might get some limited protection when paying by debit card, but only  under a voluntary scheme called chargeback. With Debit cards though you don’t generally have other protection.

 

Chargeback isn’t legal protection like section 75 (Credit Card Cover) . It’s an agreement Visa, Mastercard, Maestro and American Express have signed up to.

 

The scheme enables you to claim a refund from your card provider if a purchase doesn’t arrive or is faulty.

It works by the card company trying to claim your money back from the company you’ve paid, by reversing the transaction.

 

There’s usually no minimum spend in order to be covered by chargeback, but time limits apply for making a claim – usually up to 45 days from making the purchase.

Chargeback claims can take some time to process because the card company has to get the money refunded before it can pass it onto you.

 

Most important you need to make a formal complaint to the Debit card issuer and request an acknowledgment.

 

Good summary, but to clarify a couple of points:  In the UK, Amex debit cards (is there such a thing?) do not have chargeback protection, and the time limit for a chargeback is usually 120 days.  This can be extended in situations such as plane ticket purchases where the purchase can typically be well in advance of the service or goods being delivered, and the absolute maximum is 540 days.

 

On 5/16/2020 at 7:51 AM, Thomas J said:

Possum1931

 

https://www.chargebackgurus.com/blog/know-your-chargeback-dispute-types-debit-card-vs.-credit-card

These are USA rules and the poster has indicated he holds a UK based card, where the rules are somewhat different.

[tomazbodner]

It will depend on whether this was in-store payment (physical card payment) or online payment. If online it's harder to dispute, especially with OTP enabled. They might give you grief. However if it's physical card (someone copied card and used it for payment), they might be easier to talk to.

 

Branches will be useless. As many say, contact the hotline printed at the back of the card and press 0 to talk to a representative. If it is wrong charge... say you were supposed to pay 1990 baht but it ended up 199000 baht, you may have to bring it up with fat fingered merchant, but if it is transaction that she hasn't at all done, you may need to request card to be cancelled and reissued under new number.

 

I've had dispute twice. American Express called me the moment I returned from Denmark and plugging phone in, asking if I was shopping at BigC Ekkamai... I didn't know there was BigC in Ekkamai... And did I buy over 1 million baht of gold in some shop in Sathupradit... ??? Lady, check my records - I was shopping at Duty free shop in Copenhagen at that time... OK, stop using the card, we'll send you new one. Charges disappeared. Done.

 

Visa.. now that was a different story. I was forced to pay the entire bill first, then raise dispute, and 2 months later when it was determined that a restaurant in Central World had a card reader to clone cards at the cashier hidden somewhere at the back, I was given a refund... as balance on my card! Given the amount, I was using that card for a few years to wipe that out and then promptly cancelled that card.

 

None of them was SCB, though, so hard to say how they'll treat you but wish you all the best.

[Mark1066]

On 5/15/2020 at 8:46 PM, Paul DS said:

In general, you will not have credit card protection on a debit card.  Visa offer protection only on VISA Credit cards. Here is my explanation:

 

Paying by credit card is convenient and it also gives you added legal protection if the company you’re buying from goes bust or doesn’t deliver what it’s promised.

 

You might get some limited protection when paying by debit card, but only  under a voluntary scheme called chargeback. With Debit cards though you don’t generally have other protection.

 

Chargeback isn’t legal protection like section 75 (Credit Card Cover) . It’s an agreement Visa, Mastercard, Maestro and American Express have signed up to.

 

The scheme enables you to claim a refund from your card provider if a purchase doesn’t arrive or is faulty.

It works by the card company trying to claim your money back from the company you’ve paid, by reversing the transaction.

 

There’s usually no minimum spend in order to be covered by chargeback, but time limits apply for making a claim – usually up to 45 days from making the purchase.

Chargeback claims can take some time to process because the card company has to get the money refunded before it can pass it onto you.

 

Most important you need to make a formal complaint to the Debit card issuer and request an acknowledgment.

 

That’s not how it worked when I asked my bank in the U.K. to initiate a Visa dispute for a debit card purchase. I sent them copies of the email exchange I’d had with the vendor and they immediately reversed the charge. As far as they explained it to me, they reverse the charge straight away (assuming the evidence is compelling) and it is then up to the vendor to prove that you are wrong if they want to contest the chargeback. I suppose it could vary from bank to bank but that was how it was handled with my bank - no waiting period at all.

Edited May 27, 2020 by Mark1066