Payments
Pre-arbitration
Updated
Pre-arbitration is the stage after a merchant answers a chargeback where the issuing bank rejects that answer and challenges again, before the card network rules.
A chargeback can go several rounds. The bank files it, the merchant answers with evidence, and if the bank still disagrees it can escalate with a pre-arbitration. The merchant then accepts the loss or defends again, and an unresolved case can go to the network for arbitration, where the side held responsible pays the amount and the network's review fee.
Visa's rules set the paths per dispute condition. For fraud and authorisation disputes, Visa's process moves straight from the dispute to pre-arbitration, while processing-error and consumer disputes first get a dispute response stage.
Not every provider supports every round. Stripe says it does not support the arbitration phase, so disputes cannot be escalated to arbitrators through Stripe.
Frequently asked questions
- Should I accept a pre-arbitration?
- Accept when the bank's new information undercuts your case, because in Visa arbitration the side held responsible also pays Visa's review fee. Defend when your evidence answers the exact claim.
- What comes after pre-arbitration?
- Arbitration, where the card network decides the case. Stripe does not support escalating disputes to arbitration.