Disputes and Chargebacks

Use this queue when a card network, Stripe, Shopify, eBay or Amazon opens a dispute against one of your orders. It shows what is due, lets you assemble and submit evidence, and tracks the outcome.

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Open Disputes

Open Finance > Disputes. You can also search for Disputes in the command palette, follow the disputes banner on the Finance dashboard, or click the dispute banner on an order, which opens that dispute’s detail page directly. Viewing the queue, opening a dispute and downloading its evidence pack need permission to view accounting. Saving a draft and submitting to Stripe need permission to submit dispute evidence. Uploading evidence also needs permission to post accounting. If a dispute link was shared with you (or sits on an order) and the dispute belongs to another of your companies, Arcus finds it for you. It checks your other companies, switches to the one that holds the dispute, opens it, and shows Switched to (company name) to open this dispute. If the switch fails you see Could not switch to (company name) to open this dispute. Try again. If no company you belong to holds the dispute, the page says Dispute not found. with a Back to list link.

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What To Watch First

The dashboard is organized around urgency. The summary cards are Needs Response, Under Review, Due in 7 Days, At Risk and Won / Lost. Needs Response and Under Review show a count, and clicking either one filters the list to that status. Due in 7 Days is a count. At Risk is a dollar amount labeled open exposure. Won / Lost reads as two numbers, won first and lost second. Focus on items that need a response, items due soon, and items marked at risk before reviewing historical won or lost disputes. If the list cannot be read, each card says its figure was not loaded instead of showing a zero, and the list says disputes will appear once the read succeeds. An empty list on a successful read says No disputes found.

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Use Filters Without Losing The Queue

• Platform tabs narrow the queue to Stripe, Shopify, eBay, Amazon, or all platforms. The selected tab is kept in the page address, so you can share the link or reload without losing it.
• Summary cards recalculate for the selected platform and status so the figures describe the list you are looking at.
• Status filter offers All statuses, Needs response, Under review, Won, Lost and Warning. Needs response. A Warning is an early-stage alert, such as a card network inquiry before a formal dispute is filed; treat it with the same urgency as needs-response, since early evidence can prevent a dispute from being opened at all.
• Search finds an order number or dispute reference.

The list shows Order, Customer, Reason, Amount, Status, Due, Platform and Actions. The order number links to the order. In the Platform column, a small external-link icon opens the case in that platform’s own dashboard in a new tab when a link is available. On a phone each row becomes a card with the same fields.

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Review A Dispute

1. Open Finance > Disputes.
2. Use the platform tabs to focus on Stripe, Shopify, eBay, Amazon, or all platforms.
3. Filter by status when you need items that need response or are under review.
4. Click Review on the dispute row to open its detail page: the amount, reason, evidence due date and linked order, the evidence you have added, and the dispute’s Timeline. Back to disputes returns to the queue.
5. Click PDF on the row, or Download Evidence Pack (PDF) on the detail page, when the dispute needs a complete supporting packet. A successful download shows Evidence pack downloaded; a failure shows Download failed with the reason when one is available.
6. Submit the response in Arcus (Stripe) or in the connected platform when that platform requires it.
7. Monitor the dispute until it is won, lost, reversed, or closed.

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Evidence And Submission Paths

• All platforms: download the evidence pack PDF from the row or detail page when you need a complete support packet.
• Stripe: authorized users can save a draft or submit evidence through Arcus when the dispute is eligible and the evidence deadline has not passed.
• Shopify, eBay, and Amazon: use the platform dashboard link when the platform requires final submission outside Arcus.
• Uploads: attach PDF, PNG, or JPEG files up to 5 MB, plus structured text evidence when the detail page asks for it.
• Submitted evidence: once final evidence is submitted, changes are locked unless the platform allows a new response. The detail page shows Submitted with the date, and a count when more than one submission was recorded.

On the detail page, Add Evidence offers File Upload or Text Evidence with an evidence type: Receipt / Invoice, Customer Communication, Shipping Documentation, Service Documentation, Customer Signature, Refund Policy, Cancellation Policy, Duplicate Charge Documentation, or Other (uncategorized). Arcus stages the evidence it collects automatically with Stripe as a draft (shown under Auto-Collected Evidence), and each piece you add is recorded in the dispute’s activity history and listed under the evidence table. Until you add something, the list says No evidence uploaded yet. and the timeline says No timeline events yet.

• A successful upload shows Evidence uploaded. If the file cannot be read, Arcus shows Could not read file; any other upload problem shows Upload failed with the reason when one is available. A file over 5 MB, a type other than PDF, PNG or JPEG, or an evidence type Arcus does not recognize is refused with a sentence saying which.
• Save Draft keeps your evidence in Stripe without submitting it (Evidence saved as draft in Stripe).
• Submit to Stripe sends the final response (Evidence submitted to Stripe). It is allowed only while the dispute needs a response or is under review; a submission problem shows Submission failed with the reason when Stripe provides one.
• After the deadline, the page says Evidence due-by has passed. Stripe no longer accepts new submissions for this dispute. Save Draft stays available to users who can submit evidence; Submit to Stripe does not.
• If someone submitted from another session, Arcus says Evidence already submitted in another session. Refreshing.
• Without the permission, Save Draft and Submit to Stripe are replaced by a message that submitting evidence to Stripe needs the permission to submit dispute evidence. If you try anyway, Arcus says You do not have permission to submit evidence to Stripe.
• For Shopify, eBay and Amazon, the page says Evidence must be submitted in that platform directly: download the pack, then open the case there with Open in (the platform). If no link is available, it says there is No dashboard link available.

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If Stripe cannot take the submission

Arcus explains these in plain words when you save a draft or submit:

• Stripe is not configured for this company. Connect Stripe under Integrations first.
• Stripe could not take one of the files. The message names the evidence type, so re-upload that file and try again.
• Stripe rejected the submitted evidence. Review the rejection in the Stripe Dashboard and resubmit.
• Evidence already submitted. Cannot resubmit. The dispute is locked in Arcus.
• The dispute’s status does not accept evidence. Only a dispute that needs a response or is under review does.

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What Evidence Usually Matters

• Order number, invoice, and customer account.
• Payment confirmation and transaction references.
• Fulfillment, packing, shipment, and delivery proof.
• Customer messages or support notes related to the order.
• Return, refund, replacement, or cancellation history.
• Terms, authorization, signature, or proof of pickup when available.

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Accounting Impact

Disputes can affect cash, AR, revenue, platform clearing, fees, and refunds. The platform may remove funds before the final decision, then return funds if the dispute is won. Accounting should review the settlement detail before assuming the final impact.

• Needs response: the business still needs to submit evidence or decide not to fight it.
• Under review: the platform has the response and the result is pending.
• Won: funds may be returned or released, depending on platform timing.
• Lost: the business usually absorbs the amount and any dispute fees.
• At risk: the dispute is urgent, incomplete, or close to a deadline.

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Operational Side Effects

• Uploading evidence, saving a draft and submitting to Stripe are each recorded in the activity log and added to the dispute’s timeline, and anyone with the dispute open sees the page refresh.
• Saving a draft or submitting sends your evidence, the files you attached and the evidence Arcus collected (order, customer, shipping and delivery proof, and emails sent to the customer) to Stripe. Submitting also stamps the dispute with the submission date and locks further changes.
• A dispute can freeze fulfillment for the related order while the dispute is active when your entity uses dispute-based fulfillment holds.
• Opening a dispute can move value into a dispute or platform clearing review state until the outcome is known.
• A won dispute usually releases or returns funds according to platform timing.
• A lost dispute usually records the chargeback loss and any platform dispute fees.
• Marketplace payout review may be needed when dispute fees or reversals change the net bank deposit.

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Common Problems

• No linked order: search by customer, amount, date, platform reference, or payment reference.
• Evidence pack is incomplete: confirm invoice, tracking, delivery, and messages exist on the related records.
• Submit button is missing: confirm the dispute is Stripe, eligible for Arcus submission, not already submitted, and your role can submit evidence.
• Deadline has passed: use the platform dashboard as the final source of truth and document the outcome in Arcus.
• Upload is rejected: confirm the file is PDF, PNG, or JPEG and no larger than 5 MB.
• Customer already received a refund: verify the refund before submitting evidence or issuing another adjustment.
• Bank deposit does not match payout: review dispute fees, reversals, and platform adjustments on the payout.
• Result is unclear: use the platform dashboard as the final source for current dispute status.
• A shared link says Dispute not found: the dispute may belong to a company you are not a member of. Ask that company’s administrator to add you.

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