Customer messages as chargeback evidence

Why messages matter most for some reasons

• Not as described: a message that mentions the item, the size or the colour shows what the customer received and what they expected.
• Credit not processed: a message in which you offered or refused a refund, with the date, shows what happened and when.
• Subscription cancelled: the message that asked to cancel, and your reply, show the dates either side of the renewal.
• Product not received: a message that says the parcel arrived, or that asks you to leave it with a neighbour, speaks for itself.

What to keep

• The date and time of each message, and who sent it.
• The lines that matter. Trim the rest; a bank reviewer reads quickly.
• The channel it came from: email, helpdesk, Shopify Inbox, a social direct message.
• Nothing that is not yours to share: remove card numbers, other customers' details and anything the customer did not write to you.

Where messages live, and how to export them

• Email: print the thread to PDF from your mail app, or screenshot the message with its header showing the date and sender.
• Helpdesk tools: most export a conversation to PDF from the ticket's menu.
• Shopify Inbox: open the conversation in the admin and print the page to PDF.
• Social direct messages: screenshot the thread with the account name and date visible.

How to present them

Shopify's evidence form has a field for emails, chat logs and other communication with the customer. Shopify also lists a delivery photo or signature, your policies showing where the customer agreed to them, access logs for digital products, and archived product listings as things you can add.

• Write one short note that says what the messages show, with dates: "On 24 September the customer wrote that the parcel had arrived."
• Attach the thread as one PDF, within the size limits shown on the form, rather than many screenshots.
• In your written response, point to the message by date, the same way you point to tracking by its delivered date.

What not to do

RebutCase keeps the notes and files you add to a dispute as exhibits and cites them in the response. This is general guidance, not legal advice.

• Do not edit a message or remove the parts that go against you. A bank that spots a gap discounts the rest.
• Do not add messages from other customers, however similar the case.
• Do not include personal data the dispute does not need.
• Do not write a long story around the messages. State the fact, give the date, point to the exhibit.