Who this article is for: CleverCards Cardholders who are expecting money back from a retailer.
Can I receive refunds on my CleverCard?
Yes. Refunds for purchases made with your CleverCard can be returned to it. Your CleverCard cannot receive bank transfers or payments from anyone else.
How refunds work
A refund is money a retailer returns to you after a purchase. Whether you get a refund depends on the retailer's refund policy and their decision.
Refunds, chargebacks and pre-authorisations are different things:
A refund is agreed with the retailer and sent back to your card.
A chargeback is a formal dispute, raised when a retailer will not resolve a problem with a purchase.
A pre-authorisation is a temporary hold on part of your balance while a retailer confirms the final amount. This is common at petrol stations, car rental companies and hotels. For example, a petrol station may hold more than you end up spending. Once the final amount is known, that amount is taken and the rest of the hold is released. A released hold is not a refund, even though your available balance goes up.
How long does a refund take?
Most refunds appear on your card within 3 to 10 business days of the retailer issuing them. Some retailers take longer, and a refund can take up to 30 days.
Pre-authorisation holds can also take longer to be released. This is most common with hotels, car rentals and unattended petrol stations, where the hold is placed before the final amount is known. These holds can take up to 30 days to be released.
The timing of a refund is set by the retailer and their bank, not by CleverCards. We cannot speed up a refund before the retailer has sent it.
My refund has not arrived
Contact the retailer. Ask them to confirm that the refund has been issued, the date it was issued, and the ARN (Acquirer Reference Number). The ARN is a unique reference that lets us trace the refund. It is not usually printed on your receipt, so you may need to ask the retailer for it.
Allow time for it to arrive. Wait at least 10 business days from the date the refund was issued. Some retailers take up to 30 days.
Contact us if it still has not arrived. Email [email protected] with:
The retailer's name
The ARN
The date of the original purchase
The date the refund was issued
The refund amount
A clear photo of the full receipt, if you were given one. Please make sure the whole receipt is visible, as cropped photos may be missing details we need.
Please note: Without the ARN, we may not be able to trace the refund. If you do not have an ARN, contact the retailer and ask them to provide it.
The retailer is asking for my IBAN and BIC
Refunds should go back to the card you paid with. The retailer can do this using the original transaction, so they do not need your IBAN or BIC.
If a retailer asks for these details, they are usually trying to refund you by bank transfer, which cannot be sent to a CleverCard. Ask them to refund the original card payment instead.
IBAN and BIC are bank account details. Your CleverCard is a card, not a bank account, so it does not have them.