representment

A guest disputes a charge with their bank. The funds are pulled back from the merchant, who is notified with a reason code and a deadline. Representment is the merchant's reply: the transaction is presented again, supported by evidence answering that specific reason.

Who does this depends entirely on who processed the payment, which is the merchant of record question. The mechanics of the dispute itself are in chargeback.

The reason code tells you which fact is contested: services not rendered, not as described, unauthorised transaction, duplicate charge. A submission that retells the entire stay while ignoring the cited reason tends to fail, however sympathetic the story is.

For an unauthorised-transaction claim on a damage charge, the answer is the terms the guest accepted plus their written agreement to the amount. For not-as-described, it is the listing, the messages and dated photographs. Structure the bundle around the question actually being asked.

The booking confirmation and the accepted terms including the damage clause. The written exchange where the amount was presented and, ideally, agreed. Dated before-and-after evidence with metadata intact. A third-party invoice for the cost. And a short factual timeline reconciling the amounts.

Submit it as one coherent document rather than a folder of loose files, and keep it readable, because it will be assessed quickly by someone with no context. The full defence is in the chargeback defence guide, and the partner-platform version in the non-Airbnb chargeback.

The deadline comes from the card scheme through your acquirer and is usually measured in days. Late submissions are not considered. Many processors also charge a dispute fee regardless of outcome, and repeated disputes can affect your standing, so prevention is worth more than a good win rate.

If the issuer rejects the representment there may be further stages, but they are slower and rarely worth pursuing for a modest amount. The better investment is upstream: explicit terms, written authorisation before any extra charge, and dated records on every stay, as covered in direct-booking damage with no AirCover.