Bank disputes and chargebacks for sellers

A chargeback, also called a dispute, happens when a buyer asks their bank to reverse a charge instead of asking for a refund. Esano responds to the bank, and the amount at stake on that order is held until the dispute is decided. If it's lost, you fund the disputed amount and your share of the fee. If it's won, nothing is taken and Esano absorbs the fee.

What you'll see while a dispute is open

• The order shows a red Disputed label in your Orders list and on the order page. See what your order payout badges mean.
• Only the affected amount is held: the amount at stake on that order, plus any dispute fee allocated to you. The rest of your eligible balance is paid on schedule.
• Your Payouts page shows the held money in a notice for an open case. Held money isn't counted in Available until the dispute ends. See read your Payouts page.
• You can't start a new refund on that order while the dispute is open.

How Esano responds

Esano sends the buyer's bank the evidence on file for the order. That includes the buyer's acceptance at checkout and a record of when file access was authorized. You don't have to send anything through the Seller hub. The bank, not Esano, makes the decision.

If the dispute is won

• The holds on the order are released, and the order goes back to the normal payout hold.
• Anything Esano already recovered from you for it is restored.
• Esano absorbs the dispute fee.

If the dispute is lost

• You fund the disputed amount, which is the purchase price at stake.
• You also fund your share of the dispute fee, in proportion to the amount at stake on your shop's part of the order.
• You get an email titled "An Esano dispute decision was recorded," with a link to your Payouts page.

If the money has already been paid out, or the amount is larger than your balance, the difference becomes an amount you owe. Esano takes it from future earnings before any bank payout and never debits your bank account. See refunds after a payout and amounts you owe.

Disputes on carts with several shops

A buyer pays once for a cart, even if it holds items from several shops. A dispute can cover the whole payment or only some of it.

• One shop's item is disputed: only that shop is affected.
• A claim covers the whole cart: Esano allocates the outstanding item price to each shop by its own items.
• A partial claim that can't be tied to an item: Esano splits it in proportion to each shop's remaining, unrefunded item value.
• Dispute fee: the fee that isn't returned is split in proportion to the amount allocated to each responsible party. Esano pays the part tied to any amount it absorbs, and a fee is recovered only once in total.

If an item was refunded and also disputed, the same item price isn't recovered twice. Tax and checkout surcharges are tracked separately and aren't part of your share.

Disputes versus refunds

A refund request goes to Esano for review, and you can send evidence. A dispute goes through the buyer's bank. See respond to a buyer's refund request.

Lowering your risk

• Describe your files accurately in the listing.
• Answer buyers' messages. See reply to a buyer's message.
• Fix file problems fast. See fix a file problem before a refund.

Questions about a dispute on your order? Email customerservice@esano.com with the order number, such as E-10482, or use the contact page.