Black Friday is November 27, and the Saturday after Thanksgiving is November 28. For a lot of Chicago restaurants and local businesses, that weekend kicks off the busiest stretch of the year. More tickets, more gift cards, more online orders, more pickups. And customers usually have up to about four months to dispute, so holiday sales can turn into January disputes.
None of this is complicated. Most of it is stuff you already do. The point is to do it every time and keep the records somewhere you can find them a couple months from now. These are good habits, not legal advice.
1. Your receipt name.
Make sure the name that shows on a customer's card statement (the billing descriptor) is one they'll recognize. If it says your LLC name and your sign says something else, an honest customer can look at the charge and think "I don't remember this." Ask your processor what yours says, and get it close to the name on your door, with a phone number or city if they allow it.
2. Proof of pickup or delivery.
Keep a signature, photo or delivery confirmation, at least for bigger orders. For pickup, note the name it went out under and the time. If a delivery app handles the order, know where to find their record of it.
3. Your refund policy.
Post it where customers can see it: at the counter, on the website, on the receipt if there's room. Plain words on what you refund and how to ask. And when something goes wrong, process the refund quickly so it doesn't turn into a dispute. If a dispute has already been filed, don't send a separate refund. Answer the dispute instead, so you don't lose the money twice.
4. Tips and end-of-day batches.
Confirm tips get adjusted and the day's sales close out the same night, especially on your busiest days. That way the amount on the receipt matches what the customer signed for, and nothing sits open for days.
5. The fee lines on your statement.
Look for monthly, annual or PCI fees you don't recognize, and sort it out before the busiest weeks of the year, not after.
6. Itemized receipts with your contact info.
Date, time, what was ordered, the total and the tip line, plus your phone or email. A receipt that shows what was bought is easier to stand behind, and a customer with a question can call you before they call their bank.
7. Online order records.
The order confirmation, the customer's email and phone, and the IP address if your ordering system logs it. For online and phone orders, that's often the only record of who placed the order.
8. Gift card records.
When each card was sold, for how much, and when it got used. Gift cards move a lot this time of year, and questions about them tend to show up after the holidays.
9. Dispute notices, answered by the deadline.
A dispute notice comes with a response date set by your processor, and it can be short. Check the mail and your processor's portal or email, especially in January. Send your receipt, your pickup or delivery proof and anything else on this list. A notice that never gets answered usually goes against you.
Want a second set of eyes?
Send me your most recent full month's statement, all pages. Black out the account numbers if you want. I'll look it over at no charge and tell you what I see, including the name your customers see on their statements and what the fee lines are. If you're getting a fair deal, I'll tell you to stay put.
Or email it to Peter@NoblePayFinancial.com.
Not ready? Look up the words on your statement in the plain-English dictionary.
This checklist is general good practice for running card payments. It isn't legal advice, and every processor's dispute process is a little different.
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