The Banking Code Compliance Monitoring Committee has release the final report of its Inquiry regarding credit card chargebacks.

Under the Code of Banking Practice, banks are required to disclose certain information and follow certain procedures relating to credit card chargebacks.

The Committee found that the banks received in excess of 90,000 chargeback requests in March 2011, the sample month.

It identified the following areas of improvement:

• card holders were often given open ended timescales without an acknowledgement that a chargeback right may be lost if a referral is not made within a specific timeframe
• advice regarding time referral limits was at times inconsistent with those given in the credit card terms and conditions

It also recommended that:

• Where a dispute form is used, this should be easily available online and contact centre staff should be made aware of its use .
• Banks might consider the inclusion of wording on chargebacks in their monthly statements templates.

The Mutual Banking Code of Practice requires mutuals to assist their customers in respect of chargebacks.