Chargebacks911 Founder and CEO Monica Eaton was recently asked to share her expertise with the readers at Accounting Today through a new feature on chargebacks and accounting.
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It’s well established that chargebacks are a challenge for merchants. However, one specific facet of operations that feels the burden, but which often gets overlooked, is the accounting department.
“Customer service, legal departments, and others work throughout the year to mitigate invalid disputes,” Monica explains in the piece. “But when it comes to reporting chargebacks, dispute fees, and other losses to the Internal Revenue Service, the responsibility typically falls on your Accounting Department.”
Monica offers several pieces of accounting advice for merchants, including when to mark chargebacks as “accounts receivable,” when to mark them as “bad debts,” and which forms need be completed. “Accurate reporting and recordkeeping is the best way to minimize chargeback losses,” she explains. “Chargebacks aren’t always recorded intuitively, though.”