Refund offered by cheque even though paid by credit card

fayeashley

Hi

I am wondering whether someone might be able to shed some light on refunds.
I recently paid a deposit via credit card, i have since asked for the deposit back - which the company have agreed, but they said that they will refund me by cheque. I assumed that i would receive the refund in the same method that i paid, i.e. by card.
does anyone have any confirmation that this is right? i dont want to go back to the company and say i want my refund via card and then have them not refund me at all!
Appreciate any help!
Thanks

[Deleted User]

its usual to refund in the way original payment made,but i dont see any harm in getting a cheque especially if you need some cash

chattychappy

Normally merchant rules mean they are supposed to put the refund back onto the card. This is a matter between the merchant and their provider - it's not your concern if the merchant does otherwise.

Of course, you want the full amount back. Ie without any deduction for the fees they would have paid as part of the original transaction.

fayeashley

Great - thank you all for your help.

callum9999

chattychappy wrote: »

Normally merchant rules mean they are supposed to put the refund back onto the card. This is a matter between the merchant and their provider - it's not your concern if the merchant does otherwise.

Of course, you want the full amount back. Ie without any deduction for the fees they would have paid as part of the original transaction.

Why would the merchant make such a rule?

Surely the fees paid by the shop are refunded when a refund is sent through the merchant system (which is why I've assumed most shops want the original card) so if they write a cheque instead, there is no hassle for the merchant and they still keep their fees.

I may be misunderstanding the whole process though!

System

Alarm bells would ring for me. Maybe they have had their card services withdrawn and have a cash flow problem. A cheque is a good way to delay paying somebody by letting it bounce.

cse

Card companies prefer card refunds to be put on the cards - it makes it very easy to abuse rewards cards if you find a merchant who routinely offers refunds via cash or cheque (a refund to the card cancels out the cashback or air miles earned on the original transaction, whereas a cheque refund would not)

For the same reason it's in the merchant's interest to refund via the card... they don't want to spend huge amounts of time and resource dealing with a small but dedicated band of cashback exploiters!

So, it's a bit unusual and probably poor practice on behalf of the retailers, but really the only person that it doesn't really make a difference to is you as a customer.

dtaylor84

It also leaves the merchant open to having the card transaction reversed by the card issuer and being out of pocket. And there are money laundering implications too, if the card was stolen.

DominicJ_2

Obvious worry is they are just trying to fob you off and have no intention of refunding you
I think a few Furniture/Carpet type places do this.

Eydon

It can depend on the company.

I placed an order for a new kitchen and bathroom from B&Q. Came to £13,000 which I paid for on my card in store.

They then messed me about for weeks saying they couldn't find any fitters. I eventually got fed up and cancelled the entire order. The refund had to be issued by Head Office because of the amount, so they sent me a cheque for £13,000. I ended up £130 better off thanks to the 1% cashback on my credit card.

So it might just be a case of a different department handling the refund.

lisyloo

Normally they want to refund on the card to get their merchant fees back.
It might be that they aren't very bright and perhaps don't know how to do it or realise they'll lose out.
Alternative it could be a cynical tactic.