09 - 111 Disputed PCard Purchase Process

A. Erroneous Charges/Overcharges

If a Cardholder notices a charge/overcharge from a vendor that they have done (or normally do) business with, then the Cardholder is responsible for initially contacting the vendor to resolve any erroneous charges upon discovery. Most disputes can be resolved at this stage. Should the Cardholder be unable to reach agreement with the vendor, the Cardholder must complete and submit an USNH PCard Dispute Form with supporting documentation to Wells Fargo and copy his/her PCard Manager and the campus PCard administrator on the correspondence. USNH keeps a record of all disputes filed with the bank. The bank will initiate an investigation. Cardholders should also copy their PCard Manager on any further correspondence with the bank so their PCard Manager remains knowledgeable about how the dispute is progressing.  Provisional credit will be issued for the disputed amount by the bank while they conduct an investigation on their end.

After the investigation is complete, the Cardholder will be notified of the resolution. The Cardholder should then communicate the results of the bank's investigation to their PCard Manager. If the dispute is not settled in favor of the Cardholder, the Cardholder's default account will be charged for the disputed transaction.

B. Fraudulent Charges

If a Cardholder notices activity on their daily or monthly PCard notice that was not initiated by them or by another authorized purchaser (for department cards only), the registered owner of the card must call the 800 number located on the back of the card to report the activity as fraudulent. Conversely, if the bank emails the Cardholder requesting verification for one or more charges on the card, the Cardholder is required to respond to the request promptly to mitigate any potential loss to USNH.

The Cardholder must review all recent activity with the fraud representative at the bank to ensure a complete list of the fraudulent charges is on record with the bank. Failure to do so could result in losses to USNH. The Cardholder should also notify their PCard Manager and the Campus Card Administrator with a list of all the recent activity that was found to be fraudulent.

C. Documentation of Disputed Charges

PCard Managers should document disputed (fraudulent, erroneous, or overcharge) transactions just like any other charge to the Cardholder's account. Supporting documentation may include copies of the Dispute Form, notes or correspondence between the vendor and the Cardholder and/or PCard Managers, and any resolution information sent by the bank.

D. Timing of Disputed/Fraudulent Charges

Please note that disputed items and fraudulent charges are time sensitive.  An item can only be disputed or reported as fraudulent up to 60 days from the date of the transaction.

The PCard Cardholder will need to forward the Dispute Form to the bank and send a copy of the form to their PCard Manager and Campus PCard Administrator. If this is a case of fraud, the Cardholder will need to call the bank to log all the fraudulent charges with them for further investigation. If the charges in question happened more than 60 days ago and were not previously reported (as documented by the bank), the bank will deny the dispute and USNH will be required to pay whatever the amount of the charge(s) are to the bank. This may require assigning a FOAPAL different than the default code associated with the card.

Once the bank completes their investigation, the Cardholder will receive an email regarding the resolution and resulting action taken by the bank. The bank has 45 days to complete their investigation into the disputed activity or fraudulent charges reported, beginning on the date when the issue was first brought to their attention. If the dispute or fraudulent activity is not settled in favor of the Cardholder, the Cardholder’s default FOAPAL will be charged for the disputed/fraudulent transaction(s), unless other funding sources are discussed in advance.