Today, Citibank announced the added capability of disputing a pending credit card charge, even before it posts. It’s currently available in the web browser and the iPhone app, and an update for the Android app is expected later this year. Citi has been enhancing their mobile app over the past couple of years, including back in 2016 when they added the ability to dispute a charge. Full press release below.
This is a convenience: typically, you always have to wait until a charge posts to dispute it since it can always fall off until that point. However, there are occasions where you recognize the charge and still want to dispute it. Always easier to be able to get it done and over with right away.
I can’t get the feature to show yet, not in the browser and not in the iPhone app. I guess they haven’t sorted it out completely yet. Update: I now see it in the app.
Related: Everything You Ever Wanted To Know About Credit Card Disputes
Full press release we received from Citi:
NEW YORK, August 28, 2018 – Citi credit cardmembers now have the ability to quickly and easily dispute pending charges directly within the Citi Mobile App for iPhone and on browser in the U.S. The new feature, which is an extension of the dispute posted charges functionality that Citi launched in 2016, is designed to provide increased peace of mind to consumers and infuse simplicity and transparency within an often emotional process.
Citi is the only major U.S. credit card issuer to provide this feature on mobile. Credit cardmembers can submit a dispute on pending charges for an array of reasons including duplicate charges, unrecognized charges, canceled service or subscription etc. Once the dispute is submitted, cardmembers will be notified via the app that Citi is taking action, the status of the case and what to expect next.
“With an increasing number of consumers relying on mobile banking to manage their finances, it’s crucial that we’re providing a robust and seamless experience for them,” says Alice Milligan, Chief Digital Client Experience Officer, U.S Consumer Bank, Citi. “Through offering the ability to dispute charges, including those that are pending, and complete other key banking tasks in their channel of choice, we can enable our customers to spend less time banking and more time in the moment.”
Citi will also be offering the ability for cardmembers to dispute pending charges within the Citi Mobile App for Android later this year.
This launch follows the recent introduction of a number of innovative features, including Citi’s first ever voice capability for iPhone users. Customers who have Touch or Face ID enabled for Citi Mobile are able to ask Siri for their bank and credit card balance, which provides them with a new, easy way to check their finances.
As an online merchant, I see this as extremely risky and troubling.
We frequently use authorizations for new customers until we can verify them, but this threatens all of that. We often close one authorization and then make a full charge to settle the transaction, and often times, it takes a little while for the duplicate to go away.
Or when someone adds a card to our website, it places a $1.00 authorization (that is ultimately released) and that’s the same amount showing until we settle their purchase transaction, leading a lot of the sheeple to think there’s just duplicates…
This is incredibly discomforting and may very well lead to a complete cessation of accepting Citi cards. Because if we aren’t protected from chargebacks, we no longer have the time to conduct the necessary fraud reviews without risking a $35 chargeback Fee that we will ultimately win anyway!
This. Is. Dumb.
I REALLY hope this doesn’t spread… though I can’t see that being too likely given our authorization and capture practices are very similar to many very large retailers.
In other words, it’s just to save Citi some phone time with people who see duplicates/authorizations and get nervous, without anything changing on the merchant’s end.
You could try to modify your process so the “duplicate” charges don’t even go through.
It’s hysterical how he blames his “sheeple” customers (shows what he thinks of his clientele) on his shitty authorization process. What sort of idiot creates duplicate charges for authorization? I’ve never seen this with any retailers, so I doubt when he says this is common.
I’ve actually seen this several times. It is a bit worrisome until the correct charge posts.
This is standard practice. I’ve even had this with walmart.com
You could not ban Citi cards. You’d have to quit accepting Visa and MC.
Just like how theatres couldn’t avoid MoviePass since it’s a MasterCard.
This assumes somebody actually checks their card for a pending charge and then contests it. If you’re doing pre authorizations you should be informing consumers that it will be done. If you’re doing that probably why would they try to issue a charge back. If you’re not informing them you’re doing it, why? Complete overreaction. As per your merchant agreement with Visa/Mastercard you wouldn’t be allowed to not accept specific issuer cards either.
We do tell them. But people choose not to read the check box they click acknowledging understanding.
Are you really trying to pretend that you think the general public are good readers and rule followers? Please…
The merchant agreement says lots of stuff that we (and lots of other merchants) don’t follow, and they’re well know not to be enforced. There’s nothing *actually* stopping us from hardcoding against Citi BIN numbers. We’d just claiming “suspicious transactions”, or like Best Buy “we were unable to verify your information” BS, please try again/another card.
Ok, so you want consumers to read and follow rules but the rules set out in your merchant agreement are free to your own interpretation? There’s lots stopping you against hardcoding against Citi BIN numbers. If Citi finds out you’ve done it, you’re going to lose your ability to process payments.
Amex and Citi are the easiest to dispute while Chase is pretty hard.
Whenever I order something questionable online or with an unclear return policy I use a Citi (Double cash) card or an Amex (Business blue) card.
By the way something I learned from a smart person that when you get a certain bill in the mail that you dont agree with (a medical bill that your insurance didn’t cover when they initialy said it will etc) instead of fighting the company, just pay the bill with a credit card and then dispute the charge and let the credit card company fight for you, it works much better this way.
If they’re issuing bill after the fact (meaning they have some way to trace you, unlike a face to face purchase in store), they may just mail another bill if the previous payment was reversed by credit card company…
Merchants blacklist for this kind of thing if you do it too much (some share info too…), and a chargeback does not relieve you of your legal obligation to pay.
Be careful
Wouldn’t the credit card companies also blacklist people for doing this type of behavior?
If you’re going to dispute a hospital bill you should always ask for itemized bill first. Sometimes things slip in.
i am curious — does the credit card company “eat” small disputes == i have disputed any BS charge — sometime for under $15 — I often get instant refund. But, does the card company eat it or pass it along to merchant?
In general if you dispute something under $20-$25 they will just give you an instant permenant credit and take the loss because it cost them more then $20-$25 to investigate.
(You could successfully dispute something under $25 with Amex/Citi once per Month. Not advising to do fraud just informing the fact…).
Can you clarify what you mean by “BS charge”?