Chargeback vs Section 75: Which One Should You Use?

You have been let down by a company and you want your money back. Your bank or card company can help, but the route you take depends on how you paid and how much you spent. There are two main options and they work differently.

Section 75

This is a legal right under the Consumer Credit Act 1974. It makes your credit card company jointly liable with the seller for purchases between £100 and £30,000. If the seller breaches the contract, does not deliver, sends faulty goods, or misrepresents what they are selling, your credit card company has to make it right. It is a legal obligation, not a favour.

It only works with credit cards. Not debit cards, not charge cards, not PayPal (unless PayPal was funded by a credit card and the individual item was over £100, which gets complicated). The transaction must be between £100 and £30,000.

Chargeback

Chargeback is run by the card networks, Visa, Mastercard, and Amex. It works on both credit and debit cards. There is no minimum spend. You can use it for a £5 purchase that never arrived just as easily as a £500 one.

The catch is that it is not a legal right. It is a voluntary scheme. Your bank will raise the dispute with the seller's bank, and the seller has a chance to respond. If the seller disputes it and provides evidence that they held up their end, you might not get your money back. In practice, for straightforward cases like non-delivery or obvious faults, chargeback works well.

Which One to Use

If you paid by credit card and spent over £100: use Section 75. It is stronger, it is a legal right, and the card company cannot wriggle out of it.

If you paid by debit card, or spent under £100 on a credit card: chargeback is your option. Contact your bank and ask to raise a chargeback claim. There are time limits, usually 120 days from the transaction or from when you became aware of the problem, so do not sit on it.

If you paid by credit card and spent over £100, you can technically use either. Start with Section 75 because it is the stronger claim. If that does not work, you can still try chargeback as a separate process.

Always check the terms of your specific agreement, as individual contracts can vary. This article is for general guidance only and is not legal advice.