Chargeback for invisalign treatment not delievered

Evelyn400

Hi there,

I am looking for some advice on my situation.

I paid £3000 on a debit card back in July 2025 for invisalign treatment, alongisde that I paid 12 x 166 of direct debits towards the same treatment. The total cost of the treatment was £5,000 and this was to cover the physical aligners and also the appointments. I paid the top price so that I was guaranteed to finish the treatment, meaning I could have unlimited appointments.

The company went into liquidation in May 2026 meaning I was unable to finish my treatment. The company has been said to be fraudlant, leaving thousands of paitents with no treatment. No one from the company contacted me.

I raised this with the bank (Santander) in May but it wasn't logged properly and when I called back for an update, I was told that I was too late and out of the 120 days now. Back in May, I would have been within the correct timeframe. Now, someone at Santander has raised this as a complaint as it was Santander who were at fault not me.

This is in relation to the £3,000 debit card payment. I have been told that the total 2K in direct debits is not eligible for a chargeback or indemnity.

Can anyone advise? I am in a really tricky situation as I need to finish my treatment as my teeth are half straight and I can't afford to pay anotehr 5K for treatment.

Thanks,

Evelyn

Woodstok2000

Chargeback covers debit card payments and is a transaction reversal, so if there wss no original transaction there is nothing to reverse. Unlike section 75 (for credit cards and finance) it does not make the bank liable for the full amount.

The direct debit guarantee does not offer protection against companies going into administration.

Evelyn400

Thanks @Woodstok2000 - but there was a payment of £3000 on my debit card - is that what you mean?

Woodstok2000

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82152395#Comment_82152395

Yes. You can try a chargeback for the £3000, but not for the remainder paid by DD.

If you had paid even just £100 on a credit card, your card provider would have been liable to refund you the full £5000 under section 75.

Woodstok2000

Also, the 120 day limit can apply to the date of expected service rather than the purchase date. What date was the first appointment that the company failed to provide?

MyRealNameToo

DD indemnity doesnt cover things like insolvency, poor service etc and so that £2k would be irrecoverable via the bank.

Chargeback should have considered the failure and there are two limits to consider, 120 days from the failure and a 540 day limit as a long stop from the date of payment.

The other element that will cause difficulty is working out what the claim is for… if you booked 10 session and 5 had happened then its any easy 50% calc (though how thats applied is also a question) but you had X sessions from an unlimited number… I suspect the bank will want an expert view on the percent complete the treatment was.

born_again

How many appointments did you have from July 25 & did you get any aligners. Till May 26? As this will be the deciding factor on anything you might get back.

120 days not really come into play here, it is 540 days from debit, as this is a ongoing service. The issue is going to be based around what you actually received.

July 25 to May 26 is well over 120 days.

540 days from 1st July 2025 would be till 23rd Dec 2026

Aylesbury_Duck

Will a chargeback (for any amount) fail because the company has gone bust?

born_again

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82152666#Comment_82152666

NO. Any payouts come from their merchant bank.

Woodstok2000

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82152666#Comment_82152666

Not necessarily.

MyRealNameToo

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82152666#Comment_82152666

Theyre more likely to succeed because the company is gone. Funds come from the merchant bank provider in the first instance, its then their problem if they can get the money back from the company but this is why traditionally merchant banks required a float to be held