Dispute Regulations

Abiding by the rules dictated by regulations ensures compliance and avoids the negative consequences of non-compliance. 

Jump to:

• Regulation coverage
• Regulation E
• Regulation Z

Regulation Coverage 

Regulation E Key Concepts 

Business accounts: Regulation E was produced in order to protect those who use electronic banking services. Regulation E covers consumer accounts, however business account claims may have some fraud protection provided by the card association (Mastercard & Visa). Although business account cases can be opened, Regulation E timelines and provisional credit rules do not apply.

Consumer negligence: Consumer negligence cannot be used as a basis for customer liability. For example, liability for an unauthorized transaction cannot be determined solely by the customer writing their PIN on their debit card.

Fraud liability: In fraud cases, the customer can be held liable for up to $500 if they waited more than two business days to report fraud, from the date they learned their card was lost or stolen. The dollar amount the customer could be held liable to varies based on the timing of the unauthorized transactions, however, the bank must be able to clearly show when the customer was actually aware of the theft in order to establish customer liability. Since it's difficult to prove when the customer learned of the theft, this rule is seldom applied. 

60-Day Rule: Should a customer wait longer than 60 days from the statement date showing the first unauthorized transaction, they can be held liable for all transactions that took place after the 60th day. See the 60-Day Rule here.
Extensions can be applied to the 60-Day Rule, namely extended travel or hospitalization. Many banks also provide extensions for military deployment. 

Errors: Although there are seven types of errors that are covered by Regulation E, only three trigger a claim:

1. Unauthorized electronic funds transfer (EFT)
2. Incorrect electronic funds transfer (EFT)
3. Incorrect amount of money received from an electronic terminal (ATM)

Claims can be opened for other reasons but they are not covered under Regulation E.

Consumer Notice: Notice to customers can be provided orally or in writing. For example, if a claim is auto-paid at the case initiation, a letter would not be required if all necessary information was conveyed orally. Denials are the exception to this rule; denials must always be provided in writing. 
The customer must be notified within two business days if a provisional credit is granted. 
Upon concluding the investigation, the bank must notify the customer within three business days.

Provisional credit: A provisional credit must be granted within ten business days if an investigation cannot be completed within that time, provided the customer has returned written confirmation or submitted the dispute online. 
If a dispute is submitted on a new account (the disputed transaction falls within the first 30 days of the account's first deposit), the provisional credit timeframe is increased to twenty business days. 

Investigation timeframe: For card-based disputes, the timeframe to complete the investigation depends on several factors:

• New accounts - 90 days
• International transactions - 90 days
• POS debit transactions - 90 days
• Domestic ATM transactions - 45 days

Regulation Z Overview