Charged twice for same goods

maisie_cat

Last week I was shopping in Wickes and having put my pin in the machine the system crashed. The manager came over and tried to reset but the transaction had gone and I was promised that the transaction had not gone through the credit card so I repeated the process. Both transactions went through and the bank are now telling me that both transactions are valid (not what they told me at the time) and that they cannot help (thanks First Direct). The Wickes manager remembers the issue and when I go in store will refund. The problem I have is that Wickes would not give me anything in writing to confirm what happened and if they refused to refund I could lose the £80. Anybody know what I should have done or should do to protect myself in the future?

[Deleted User]

The machine would have still printed off a transaction void or accepted receipt.

If you think the manager in Wickes will process the refund then you have no issue

molerat

Have you seen both transactions showing as cleared debits on your account - I am very wary of what bank call centres tell me. If so go into Wickes with a copy of the statement and whatever receipts you have. I had a similar experience in a store at the weekend and I got one void receipt and then a full receipt.

maisie_cat

The first transaction could not produce a receipt as the system had crashed and they refused to put anything in writing as, as far as they were concerned the transaction never happened. My concern is what would happen with somebody else. There was no void transaction receipt as the system crashed, and originally the bank told me that both were unlikely to go through, but a week later they have.

dj1471

Your other option is a formal complaint with First Direct. As they can clearly see two identical transactions made minutes apart they should have agreed to process a chargeback.

Terry_Towelling

I thought First Direct had a good reputation for customer service.

Strictly speaking, the transactions are not a case of duplicate-processing because there are indeed two transactions both authorised for payment by the cardholder. However, that does not preclude the use of a chargeback to remedy the situation. There is absolutely no reason why a card issuer could not still do a duplicate-processing chargeback complete with explanation if needed. The only danger might be the retailer's bankers acting equally uselessly and representing it with no proper referral to the retailer.

The issuer could even do a 'paid by other means' chargeback, citing the first transaction as the 'other means'. This sort of situation used to crop up a lot and was almost always resolved through a simple chargeback.

All that said, if the store manager will refund you, then get in quickly and get it done that way. If that gets you nowhere, back to the card issuer and insist they help you, and then complain if they don't.

The other part of your question was how do you protect yourself from it happening again? Well, it is unlikely to happen again but, to protect yourself, you would need someone at the store to note the time and date and the details of the situation and sign a document to affirm that if a double-charge results they will refund it.

I see you said the store wouldn't do this on this occasion but you would have to insist - ask for the manager; do whatever you have to to get what you need; don't be fobbed off.

oldfella

go to wickes and tell them to issue a credit

if most unlikely they wont, write to the credit card company and tell them if they wont reverse it you will issue a section 75 claim on the basis of non delivery of goods

Craig1981

oldfella wrote: »

go to wickes and tell them to issue a credit

if most unlikely they wont, write to the credit card company and tell them if they wont reverse it you will issue a section 75 claim on the basis of non delivery of goods

as purchase under £100, cannot do s75

Craig1981

are you sure both transactions have been AUTHORISED? both showing different authorisation codes? if so, then you can ask for a chargeback from First Direct. they will be able to see 2x same amount transaction within minutes of each other, and you having one receipt. there should be no issues with this at all. ( if not successful with refund from store. )


I have a transaction at a retailer last week went through twice - one authorised, the other as of this morning still shows as pending, but this is a regular occurrence on my mastercard credit cards (unsure why). The pending transaction eventually drops off after a week or so.

guesswho2000

Craig1981 wrote: »

as purchase under £100, cannot do s75

Correct (with the exception of where the total cost of goods services is >£100<£30000, but you only pay a small amount by credit card), but in all cases, you can get the issuer to initiate a chargeback under the Visa/MC or Amex scheme rules.

eco_warrior

This is a simple chargeback, the bank have fobbed you off.