Ultra.
Chargebacks suck and they are literally the biggest headache for streamers. Though donations/tips are completely voluntary, donors will often dispute their transactions. For full-time streamers, chargebacks can be extremely frustrating as tips/donations are a major part of their income.
This article will cover credit card and PayPal chargebacks and serves as a general guide to inform streamers about chargebacks. This should not be used as a prediction on chargeback cases. Chargeback disputes vary case by case. As we try our best to win the disputes for streamers, we cannot guarantee that every dispute will be won because the decision comes from the payment processor and bank.
Why Can't I Simply Refund the Money to the Donor?
Unfortunately, once a credit card chargeback has been made, the option to issue a refund is no longer possible.
Require Login
Make sure to enable login verification for your donations. This means that whoever donates, must have a Twitch/YouTube/Facebook account. This will help you with the dispute if you receive one.
For Credit Card Chargebacks:
Credit card donations are the donations that are made with our credit card option.
- You can see your credit card balance under "Donation Settings".
You can dispute the chargebacks and Streamlabs will be appointed to dispute those chargebacks on your behalf if requested.
Things you should know about credit card chargebacks:
- Streamlabs's terms of service states that the donations are non-refundable. When your donations are refunded, it is refunded through our card processor for fraud suspicion, not by Streamlabs.
- When a chargeback is being filed to your account, you will receive an e-mail from us. Contact the donor as soon as possible to resolve the issue. It's always the best to talk to the donor about the chargeback first and understand why they filed the dispute.
- If the donor wants a refund of their donations, the streamer can refund the donations under "My Donations".
- If the donor insists on proceeding with the chargeback, Streamlabs will be elected to dispute the chargeback. You can get in contact with us by sending us a ticket here.
- There will be a chargeback fee of $15 deducted from your balance by our card processor, not by Streamlabs. When you receive a chargeback, the card processor will deduct the original donation plus the $15 fee from your account. If we win the chargeback, the $15 fee will be waived. It is always better to refund the donations than to go through disputes as there is a fee for disputes.
- There is a time limit for the disputes so please be aware that it is your responsibility to provide the necessary information in a timely matter.
What to include in your support ticket:
You should send us a ticket as soon as possible including:
- Chatlog with the donor about the chargeback.
- Vods or screenshots of the donation.
Disputes can be very tricky and complicated. Sometimes it may take up to 30 days for the disputes to be resolved. In the meantime, please be patient and we will fill you in with updates as soon as possible.
For Paypal/Unitpay/Skrill Chargebacks:
In this section, we will be covering chargebacks on Paypal as Unitpay, Skrill and Paypal are fairly similar to each other.
What you should know about Paypal chargebacks:
- Streamlabs' terms of service cover all forms of donations so yes, Paypal donations should also be non-refundable.
- The best way to resolve this issue is to contact Paypal and explain the situation. Over the years, Paypal caught up to this issue and have been handling chargebacks more appropriately.
- You will receive an e-mail from Paypal if a dispute is being filed against you.
- You sometimes have the option to refund a donation made to you once the chargeback has been filed on PayPal. You can find this option in the resolution center once viewing the dispute.
- There will be a $20 chargeback fee applied to the account by the card associations.
- It is your responsibility to dispute the charges on Paypal. Streamlabs cannot dispute the charges for you as we do not have access to your PayPal account.
Things to include in your Paypal dispute:
- Transaction ID of the donation, Vods and or screenshots of the donation and the disclaimer on your stream page
- Here is Paypal's guide on resolving chargebacks and disputes
You can also block the person from donating to you
You can report and block the donor by going to your Streamlabs dashboard, then "My Donations". After you report the donor, the system will IP ban them from making donations to your account.
Have any questions? Feel free to send us a ticket