What is a Stripe Dispute and how to handle It?
A Stripe dispute, also referred to as a chargeback, inquiry, or retrieval, occurs when a cardholder questions a payment with their card issuer. An inquiry or retrieval may involve a request for additional information, but it can escalate into a chargeback. When a chargeback is initiated, the payment is reversed and both the disputed amount and a dispute fee are deducted from the account balance.
Fundraise Up provides visibility into disputed and potentially fraudulent donations by displaying dispute-related information received from Stripe in the Donations dashboard. Dispute indicators and status updates are synced automatically from Stripe and reflected on donation records for reporting and tracking purposes.
How dispute actions are handled
When a donation shows a dispute-related status in Fundraise Up, the next steps take place in Stripe.
Stripe provides a guided dispute workflow in its Dashboard for reviewing dispute details and submitting responses. This includes providing written explanations, uploading supporting evidence, and monitoring the investigation until a final decision is reached.
Fundraise Up does not participate in the dispute workflow or influence dispute outcomes. Instead, it reflects the current dispute status and final result once Stripe completes the process.
After the dispute is resolved in Stripe:
- If the dispute is won, the donation remains marked as Succeeded. However, a warning icon appears on the donation to indicate an active dispute.
- If the dispute is lost, the donation is marked as Refunded
This separation ensures that dispute resolution follows payment network requirements in Stripe, while Fundraise Up remains the source of record for donation visibility and reporting.