Are you eligible for a chargeback?

What a chargeback actually is

A chargeback is a dispute you raise with your card issuer, not with the person or business you paid. The issuer reviews the payment and can reverse it if your case qualifies.

It only applies to card payments, such as credit or debit card transactions. If you paid by bank transfer or DuitNow instead, the process that applies is a bank recall, which works differently.

For the wider picture of how this route works in Malaysia, see card chargebacks explained. Knowing which route matches how you paid saves time.

Grounds that usually qualify

Three situations commonly qualify for a chargeback. The first is goods or services you paid for but never received, such as an online order that never arrived.

The second is a charge you did not authorise at all, for example if your card details were used without your knowledge. The third is a payment connected to fraud, including a scam that misled you into paying.

Not every disappointing purchase qualifies. A chargeback is meant for a payment that went wrong in one of these specific ways, not simply a change of mind.

What evidence helps your case

Card issuers want to see what happened in plain terms, backed by records. Keep the transaction receipt, any messages with the seller, and screenshots of the listing or offer.

If the payment relates to a scam, add anything that shows how you were misled, such as chat messages or a fake website. This helps the issuer understand why the charge should be reversed.

Submit everything together when you raise the dispute, rather than piece by piece. A complete first submission tends to move faster than one that trickles in across separate calls.

Why timing matters

Card issuers and card networks set a window during which a dispute can be raised, and it varies between issuers. Waiting too long can mean losing the right to dispute the charge at all.

Report the problem to your card issuer as soon as you notice it, even while you are still gathering evidence. You can usually add documents to an open case afterward.

What to do next

Call your card issuer’s dispute or fraud line and explain what happened. Ask directly whether the situation qualifies for a chargeback, and what the current time limit is for your card.

If the payment was part of a wider scam, also file a police report, since it supports both the chargeback and any later steps.

You do not have to work out which category your case fits alone. Tell us what happened, and we can help you check a chargeback against the other recovery routes too.