Best Practices to Avoid Credit Card Chargebacks

The best way to avoid chargebacks is prevention—preferably at the time of the transaction. Here are some tips:

Always process chip cards as chip transactions
Swipe non-chip cards through the terminal
If a card is declined, ask for another form of payment—do not re-swipe or override
Match the last four numbers on the slip
Request/verify the signature
For keyed/manual entry transactions, check the expiration date and make an imprint

While it’s rare, cards can be inactive. Your processor can check with the issuer to determine if a card has been closed. Your processor also should be validating if disputes are, in fact, fraud. Here is a deeper dive into more ways you can avoid card disputes.

EMV Liability Shift—Chip Cards and Chargebacks

Since October 2015, merchants without an EMV-compatible terminal or POS system are responsible for chargebacks and fraudulent card acceptance. It’s important to note this only applies when an EMV card is presented at the POS. Although the shift happened months ago, you may still be wondering about a few things—the reason for the liability shift or how fraud is still occurring if EMV is so secure. It’s nearly impossible for a fraudster to copy the EMV chip, but easy for them to copy the information from the magnetic stripe that still exists on all cards—new and old.

The problem? If a merchant doesn’t have an EMV terminal, there’s no way to detect if they’re accepting what should be an EMV card. EMV-enabled terminals will signal that the card should be dipped instead of swiped. At that point, if the card doesn’t have a chip, it’s considered fraudulent.

This is an important side note because smart criminals will avoid businesses with upgraded equipment. Merchants still using the old magnetic stripe terminals are at higher risk for chargebacks. For more information on the EMV liability shift, visit our EMV resource page.

Here are some ways to decrease your chance of fraud:

To avoid chargebacks on chip cards, upgrade to an EMV-enabled terminal
When processing a chip card, follow the instructions on the terminal
Remember that you’re not protected if a chip card is swiped or keyed in
If you haven’t upgraded to EMV, check out these best practices on the link below.

Tips for Staying Secure Without EMV [Infographic]

POS Buyers Guide

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The prospect of selecting the right POS software can be overwhelming; however, this need not be the case. Choosing the right POS technology is a painless process, providing you approach it in a strategic fashion. Heeding the easy-to-follow tips below ensure that you choose the POS software that is best suited to your business.

With its potential to increase sales and operating efficiency — not to mention its other benefits — your point of sale (POS) system is one of the most important investments you’ll make in your retail or restaurant operation. That’s why it’s important to choose the right POS technology — and the right POS vendor. Here are some factors to consider in finding the best POS company for your business:

1. Understanding of your operation and industry. Different categories of retailers and restaurant operators have industry-specific needs and concerns, and their operating practices vary from segment to segment. The best POS company is familiar with the ins and outs of how businesses in your particular market operate, the latest trends in your industry, and the pain points faced by players in your segment. More importantly, the best POS company uses this knowledge to specify a POS solution that is truly right for your business. Besure to consider your credit card processing concerns and needs. Especially the EMV requirements.

To easily assess a vendor’s familiarity with your business and business segment, list the top three problems you would like to eliminate or the top three objectives you would like to accomplish with a POS system, and ask how their technology will fit the bill. If you receive vague answers or a sales pitch that emphasizes technology features, you still haven’t found the best POS company.

2. Reputation and longevity. When you contact a POS provider with a question or problem, you don’t want to wait days for a response — or receive none at all because the vendor was just a “flash-in-the-pan” and no longer exists. The best POS company has a reputation for quickly answering operators’ calls for help and support and has been on solid business footing for several years.

To gauge financial stability, take a look at prospective vendors’ Dunn & Bradstreet ratings and, ideally, current financial statements. At the same time, obtain a few references — preferably, from retailers or restaurant operators in your line of business.

3. Availability of free trials and demos. The adage “try before you buy” definitely applies to POS hardware and software; it’s important to ensure that you’re comfortable with the technology before you sign on the dotted line. Making trials and demos available to prospective customers at no charge signals that a provider belongs in the “best POS company” category.

4. Tech support package. Regardless of the caliber of your POS system, you’ll eventually need technical support. Find out whether the provider makes support available on site or delivers it via a Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) model. Either way, the best POS company will back you up with support not only during regular business hours, but also after hours and on weekends and holidays for critical issues. It’s desirable for the vendor to have a dedicated help line so support-related issues may be handled quickly — before they have a negative impact on your business.

5. Degree of scalability. The best POS company has software that is not  hardware dependent and can scale as your business grows. Any entity that qualifies as a “best POS company” is also flexible enough to accommodate plans to expand your operation — whether out of the area, out of state, or to another part of the country. Consistency, stability, and logistics necessitate working with a single POS vendor, rather than with several different vendors whose systems may be too disparate to support a cohesive retail or restaurant organization.

The search for the best POS company takes time and effort. But when you find the right POS company to partner with, you will have the security of knowing they understand your business and can help you achieve your business goals in addition to providing and maintaining the right POS system for your business.