The dispute process—the means by which a consumer can contest a credit card charge—is a vital aspect of the payments industry. Handling disputes takes time and money, and if it’s not done effectively, consumer satisfaction can be negatively impacted and merchants and issuers could lose money. With money and customer satisfaction on the line, companies need to ensure that their dispute management process is efficient and responsive. This is especially true going forward, as credit card volume is expected to rise; rising credit card volume means more disputes. To learn how to improve the dispute management process for the future, PaymentsJournal sat down with Jack Lynch, SVP and chief risk officer at PSCU and president of CU Recovery. Joining us in the conversation was Brian Riley, director of the Credit Advisory Service at Mercator Advisory Group. During the conversation, Lynch and Riley discussed how PSCU is approaching dispute process reform, the role of real-time communication, and what it means to “future-proof” a credit union’s member experience. They also unpacked key data related to disputes. PaymentsJournalPSCU Talks Dispute Management of the FuturePaymentsJournal PSCU Talks Dispute Management of the FuturePaymentsJournaljQuery(document).ready(function ($){var settings_ap41757534 = { design_skin: "skin-wave" ,autoplay: "off",disable_volume:"default" ,loop:"off" ,cue: "on" ,embedded: "off" ,preload_method:"metadata" ,design_animateplaypause:"off" ,skinwave_dynamicwaves:"off" ,skinwave_enableSpectrum:"off" ,skinwave_enableReflect:"on",settings_backup_type:"full",playfrom:"default",soundcloud_apikey:"" ,skinwave_comments_enable:"off",settings_php_handler:window.ajaxurl,skinwave_wave_mode:"canvas",pcm_data_try_to_generate: "on","pcm_notice": "off","notice_no_media": "on",design_color_bg: "111111",design_color_highlight: "ef6b13",skinwave_wave_mode_canvas_waves_number: "3",skinwave_wave_mode_canvas_waves_padding: "1",skinwave_wave_mode_canvas_reflection_size: "0.25",skinwave_comments_playerid:"41757534",php_retriever:"https://www.paymentsjournal.com/wp-content/plugins/dzs-zoomsounds/soundcloudretriever.php" }; try{ dzsap_init(".ap_idx_83349_2",settings_ap41757534); }catch(err){ console.warn("cannot init player", err); } }); A broad overview of disputes and credit card volume “Disputes play an important part in the credit card industry because what’s really essential in this business is that transactions have to be irrefutable.” Brian Riley Riley kicked off the discussion by summarizing the importance of disputes. “Disputes play an important part in the credit card industry because what’s really essential in this business is that transactions have to be irrefutable,” explained Riley. In order for people to have confidence in their financial institutions, they need to know that the charges on their account are liable for their payment. However, consumers also need a mechanism to contest a charge, especially if they believe they were not the ones who made it. This need gives rise to the dispute resolution process. Fraud losses increased across products, but credit card fraud is now above 10 basis points Each year, there’s an estimated 25 million credit card disputes in the United States, according to Mercator Advisory Group. With over 70 billion credit card transactions occurring annually, 25 million disputes do not account for a massive percentage of total volume. However, resolving 25 million disputes a year takes a considerable amount of time and money.