Hey customer - go back to the merchant for your $

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Question:

If a customer who has had prior transactions with a merchant, Mastercard says the customer must first make a good faith attempt to resolve the issue with the merchant before a dispute can be filed. If the customer refuses to make the good faith attempt it limits the banks ability to investigate the claim even though Reg E requires it, which limits the information the bank can obtain to determine if the customer authorized the transaction. How can the bank best handle this type of situation to meet Reg E and yet protect the bank from unnecessary losses?

Answer:

You may be able to retract zero liability or not pay provisional credit at 5 days (for Visa) if the consumer fails to meet those requirements. That is a condition of "the bank can do more, but not less" than what Reg E requires. As to the Reg E claim, the bank handles it as best it can, but the consumer has absolutely no obligation to go back to a merchant. That is all on the bank.