How I lost over $450.00 on a Yeezy Boost 350 V2 and how you can prevent it happening to you
If you’re not a sneakerhead, a Yeezy fan or a reseller, you probably underestimate Kanye West’s brand and the resale value of his hyped shoes. The Yeezy Boost 350 V2 Black “Non-Reflective” released on June 7th, 2019 at a retail price of $220.00 USD
How I ended up losing all my money
Back in June 2019, I received an order for Yeezy Boost 350 V2 Black “Non-Reflective” style FU9006 priced at $460.00. Though not a first-time sale, it was exciting and without a second thought, the order was accepted, and the item shipped within 2 business days. Communication with the purchaser during the process was consistent and nothing appears odd. However, within less than a week after the buyer received the shoe, a dispute email was sent from Stripe, so I immediately reached back to the buyer concerning the issue but never got a response. I have been scammed “AGAIN,” I said to myself.
Shortly after, Stripe was contacted, but they did nothing saying there was no chargeback protection with the account. So, I submitted an appeal with evidence of the purchase along with the transcripts of communication to show that the buyer dispute was invalid. Stripe wasted no time to withdraw $475.00 to settle the dispute, adding an extra $15.00 processing fee. Infuriated by the company lack of protecting sellers from fraudulent disputes and a thirst for answers led to Googling complaints and discovering many unhappy customers.
Fraudulent disputes can be harmful to individuals and businesses.
Fraudulent disputes filed by customers are not something strange but can have a tremendous financial impact on businesses and resellers like myself. Financial fraud remains a key issue impacting over three-quarters of companies and in today’s digital era, it is now easier than ever before to commit fraudulent acts. It is estimated that the annual cost to the global economy from cybercrime is $445 billion a year.
The bank decided in the buyer’s favor.
Despite all the evidence submitted, the buyer bank agreed with the customer and dismissed the appeal. So, $475.00 along with the shoe went down the drain without a valid reason, even after doing everything an authentic seller would do to ensure trust with their customers and maintaining a long-term business relationship.
Implemented best practice
Stripe remains a recommended payment processing system even after a bitter first encounter. To reduce chargeback or fraudulent dispute, the company introduced its chargeback protection that defends business from the unpredictability of disputes. They promised to cover the disputed amount and waive any dispute fees with no evidence submission required for a 0.4% fee per transaction. Since implementing the protection, there have been zero repeated fraudulent disputes. Scammers, however, have tried multiple times to place orders, but have been unsuccessful.
How it works
Stripe innovative approach “take the guesswork out of disputes.” The company use machine learning to block fraudulent purchases and require buyers identified as risky to provide more information through Dynamic 3D Secure, a process used for card authentication when paying. Implementing the chargeback protection is easy and painless. The first step is a request access to Stripe Chargeback Protection (SCP), integrate it with the new checkout version and enable SCP with a single click.
A favorite of this process is the ability to set radar, which requires no coding. As a business or entrepreneur using Stripe payment processing system, the radar provide optimized views, robust insights, custom rules and block and editing list.
Since enabling SCP and understanding how to navigate their platform, the $460.00 charge may have been an identity theft. As illustrated in the image below, the location of the buyer was in Brooklyn, NY, but the card used was registered 380 miles away. Perhaps the rightful owner filed the claim after noticing the charge on their account or it was a coordinated scam, no one knows.
In conclusion
Thanks to Stripe Chargeback Protection, over 90 attempted transactions were blocked or canceled. Businesses suffer when financial institutions and government policy cannot protect them from these types of online frauds. This experience highlights the importance for entrepreneurs or businesses to identify an issue and find solutions to overcome the barrier. Most of my customers use either PayPal or Stripe to buy and it is important to serve them all based on their payment preference while protecting my finances.
