Disputes, Claims and Cancellations
Direct debit is a cost effective and easy way to collect payments for various goods and services. It's incredibly secure and reliable, and with Zepto even faster and easier.
Within the direct debit request (DDR) rules which form part of the Bulk Electronic Clearing System (BECS) procedures of the Australian Payments Clearing Association (APCA) are clear guidelines on how to handle claims and cancellations of authority.
This article will cover the following topics:
Common Reasons For Claim:
Common Reasons For Late Returns:
Disputes (DE Claims)
When your customers agree to the DDR and DDRSA, they are instructed to contact either yourself or Zepto in the event of a claim. However, they are within their rights to submit a direct debit claim directly with their bank.
If you're customer makes a dispute/claim directly with their bank, this is what we will do:
Pause all future transactions scheduled for that account
Immediately contact you (the client) via email, seeking proof of authority as well as proof of purchase of goods or services. This is to be supplied within 24 hours.
If you would like to dispute the claim, we will provide that information to our financial institution, and will un-pause that account once we have reached a consensus with the bank.
Alternatively, if you accept the claim we will return the funds and debit your recovery/nominated account for the claimed amount.
Common Reasons For Claim:
No Authority
Dispute: Provide a valid copy of authority. Include a statement of account if the
transaction that they are disputing pertains to an additional drawing date due to a
dishonour or a late payment fee to avoid further information being requested. If you
have refunded the transaction amounts – provide the copy of credit transaction to
support the dispute.
Accept: If you are accepting the claim, advise you accept this claim via return email.
Cancelled Authority
Dispute: Advise if the customer contacted you directly to cancel their DDR. Include a
copy of the agreement, scheduled payments and advise that no correspondence has
been made with regards to revoking their DDRA or changing their current payment
arrangement. If the customer did contact you, please provide a response including the
date they cancelled with you.
Accept: Notification that you accept the claim as the date of transaction was after the
date they cancelled with you.
Claim For Value
Dispute: Provide a valid copy of authority. Include a statement of account if the
transaction that they are disputing pertains to an additional drawing date due to a
dishonour or a late payment fee to avoid further information being requested.
Accept: If you are accepting the claim, then advise you accept this claim via return
email.
Claim Not For Value
The bank is asking for a copy of the agreement, not a refund. Provide a valid copy of
authority.
Debit User Not Known to Customer
Bank is requesting documents to show customer who is debiting their account. Usually results in the merchant’s name on the statement being different to the documents the customer received.
Dispute: Provide a valid copy of authority (name on documentation/authority correlate
with the bank account on claim request).
Accept: You will accept the claim if the account holders name and name on authority
are different and you are unable to provide documents in the same name.
Late Returns
Late Returns occur when the bank processing time is longer than our agreed fast clearance time with you. Keep in mind, these reasons are passed to us straight from your customers bank and we then forward them to you. Most of the time, your customers bank will use the correct message but there is the chance that they have sent an ambiguous or misleading reason and you may need to reach out to your customer and have them contact their bank to gain further clarification.
Common Reasons For Late Returns:
Payment Stopped
The account holder has requested that their bank stop any direct debit transactions.
Contact the customer to determine an alternate form of payment or if they wish to stop their DDA.
No Account/Incorrect Account
Contact your customer to determine if the BSB and account number you have is correct.
Refer To Customer
Contact your customer to determine if they have sufficient funds in their account, the
BSB and account number is correct and if their account allows direct debit transactions.
Account Closed
The account holder has closed their account. Contact your customer to ask for new
account details.
NPP Disputes
NPP disputes are quite varied, see a list of the main investigation types below:
Fraud/Scam – Inquiry Regarding Suspicious Activity/ Fraud Investigation / Notification of Suspicious Activity
Request to Hold Funds
Creditor Trace Request
Debtor Trace Request
Solicited Payment Return
For NPP dispute responses, we require a response within 1 business day. As each case differs, you will be requested to supply a varied amount of information to support your dispute including an not limited to:
KYC’s
Contracts
Statement of accounts
If a Digital Wallet is involved in the dispute, we ask for proof or confirmation along with how and who provided the wallet address.
Cancellation of Authority
If a customer who has authorised a DDR decides they no longer want to allow direct debits from their account, it is their right to cancel the DDR directly with their bank.
The agreements between Zepto, you and the customer do not override a customer’s rights between themselves and the bank to withdraw any direct debit authority given to a third party.
By notice to the bank a customer can instruct their bank not to accept a particular debit request.
While it is desirable that a third party debit user be notified by the account holder of any withdrawal of authority, and while DDR service agreements will request customers to direct such requests to the debit user, a bank is required to comply with any instruction from its customer countermanding a DDR, whether or not that instruction has also been sent to the debit user.