Francois Bernier wants his money back from a hotel in Italy, but he’s not sure if he can get it.
He’s asked for his refund repeatedly — he even wrote a polite email and translated it into Italian — but he says the hotel has been ignoring him for months.
Fortunately, Bernier paid with a credit card.
Unfortunately, it looks like he’s long past the time to file a chargeback.
“I’m not sure if a credit card company can compel the hotel to issue a refund,” he says. “And I also seem to remember that most credit card companies require you to dispute a charge within a certain number of days.”
Is he out of luck?
Maybe, maybe not.
Bernier’s case raises some important questions that we get a lot.
- Can I dispute a credit card charge I made abroad?
- Which laws apply when I’m disputing a charge?
- How long do I have to file a credit card chargeback that I made abroad?
The answers to those questions might surprise you.
“We will refund the amount paid as soon as possible”
Bernier’s case looks simple. He had a one-night reservation at the Hotel San Giorgio in Civitavecchia, Italy. When his schedule changed, he asked the hotel — in writing — if it would refund the $199 he’d prepaid.
An employee named Andrea responded to Bernier’s email the same day, writing, “We confirm the cancellation and we will refund the amount paid as soon as possible.”
Over a month later, Bernier still had not received his refund. He sent a follow-up email asking when he could expect the refund. When he didn’t receive a response, Bernier sent another follow-up email a month later.
This time, he wrote in Italian using Google Translate, hoping to catch someone’s attention. Still, his emails remained unanswered.
“I can understand a refund process may take some time,” he told me. “But it does appear to me that this hotel is deliberately engaging in this practice and seeking to retain money that is not theirs. When correspondence is simply ignored, this signals to me, the failure to make the refund is deliberate.”
Perhaps. Deliberate or not — can he get a refund? After all, he paid with his American Express card. Isn’t he protected?
Can I dispute a credit card charge I made abroad?
You can file a dispute with your credit card company for charges made internationally.
Bernier is based in Canada. His hotel is in Italy.
The Amex agreement for his card is fairly standard. It promises to take “all reasonable and appropriate steps” to resolve any dispute with a merchant, no matter where the merchant is located.
One of the most enduring myths is that credit card disputes only work if you’re in your home country, but is that true? I haven’t come across any cases where a credit card company has turned down a dispute because the purchase took place outside the country (or in the country, for that matter).
Are there any special limitations to charges made abroad? No. In fact, banking regulations in your country of residence would govern your rights to file a dispute. Let’s have a look at those.
Which laws apply when I’m disputing a charge?
Since Bernier is in Canada, he has several consumer rules that apply to his issue.
- The Canadian Bank Act and its regulations. The laws contain consumer protection provisions that apply to credit card customers of federally regulated banks. They include limits on consumer liability when a card is lost or stolen.
- Provincial consumer protection laws. These laws give consumers the right to refunds from the suppliers or merchants they purchase goods and services from in certain circumstances. Since the transaction technically happened in Quebec, provincial consumer protection laws could come into play.
- Cardholder agreements. These are the terms and conditions under which the financial institution lends money to you through the credit card account. They usually include a description of your protections and obligations, although those can sometimes be vague.
- Card network rules. Financial institutions are required to follow these rules to process chargeback requests between cardholders and merchants. These rules are set by the credit card networks, such as American Express, Mastercard and Visa.
Interestingly, Bernier would have learned more about his rights to dispute a charge under the American Express merchant agreement for Canada. (He has 30 days to file a dispute, but there are exceptions for products or services that are rendered in the future, which gave him an opening to file a chargeback even after his month was up.)
How long do I have to file a credit card chargeback that I made abroad?
The quick answer is 30 days in Canada. In the United States, a 1975 law called the Fair Credit Billing Act (FCBA) gives you 60 days from the time you receive your credit card bill to dispute a charge. This also applies to purchases made overseas. The cardmember and merchant agreements do not distinguish between a domestic and international purchase.
However, these are minimums. Credit card companies have some flexibility when accepting disputes. So, for example, if you book a cruise for next year and are past your 30 or 60 days, and something goes wrong on your vacation and you need to file a dispute, your credit card may accept it.
What if your credit card company says “no” to your dispute?
In Canada, you can appeal to the Ombudsman for Banking Services and Investments (OBSI). It offers a dispute resolution service for consumers who have complaints against their financial institutions, including credit card issuers. Although the OBSI doesn’t provide legal advice, it can help you understand your rights and options when dealing with disputed credit card charges.
In the United States, you can file a complaint with the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. Although it doesn’t mediate disputes between consumers and credit cards, our team has seen complaints get resolved by calling the government entity.
But there’s really no substitute for taking matters into your own hands. Self-advocacy — by reaching out to the American Express executive contacts and, if that doesn’t work, calling our advocacy team.
And that’s exactly where Bernier ended up — talking to our team.
“It appears you have given them ample time to provide the refund”
Bernier reached out to us and explained the problem. By the time he contacted us, it had been four months since the hotel had promised him a refund in writing.
“It appears you have given them ample time to provide the refund,” our advocate Dwayne Coward wrote. “Have you filed a dispute with your credit card? If not, that would be the recommended next step.”
Bernier was incredulous.
“Perhaps things are different in the U.S.,” he replied. “But here in Canada, there is nothing a credit card company would do. Because I am not disputing the original charges. The issue is the failure of the provider to proceed with a refund. A credit card company can’t compel them to do that. And I also seem to remember that most credit card companies require you to dispute a charge within x number of days.”
Dwayne said that was incorrect.
“The credit card merchant agreements allow disputes based on the date of service, rather than the charge date for these types of charges as Christopher notes in this article,” he noted. “The dispute would be for a service you canceled based on the cancellation policy.”
Good news: The credit card company is siding with you!
Shortly after that, we had some good news from Bernier.
“I wanted to take an opportunity to thank you for your assistance in providing helpful information,” he said. “I was successful in having the credit card company reverse the hotel charges.”
So that’s the bottom line — you may have more options than you think, even if you’re dealing with a credit card company overseas and even if you’re governed by a merchant agreement outside the U.S.
It would be great if we had similar rights for electronic money transfers made outside the credit card networks. Unfortunately, most countries don’t give consumers the same rights to dispute these types of transfers, allowing scams and shady deals to proliferate.
