At Great Southern Bank, we understand that unrecognised transactions on your account can be stressful and we’re here to help.
The most important advice we can give to protect you from unauthorised transactions is to:
- Promptly report any issues you identify to us as soon as possible to ensure a claim can be made within relevant chargeback periods
- Regularly check your transactions and account balances to identify any unusual transactions
- Keep a record of your purchases and payments to make it easier for you to identify any issues
Card payment disputes
Starting with the basics
What should you do if you don’t recognise a card transaction on your account?
- Ask any secondary card holders to your account if they made the transaction
- If you don’t recognize the merchant, do a quick online search to see if a merchant you know uses a different trading name. If it is an Australian Business, have a look on the Australian Business Register
- Have you given your card details to someone when subscribing to a free trial that may be finished?
It might be a good idea to contact the merchant to discuss the transaction. This may remind you of a purchase that you did make or a payment that you did owe them!
As well as taking the above steps, Great Southern Bank also has a role to play in resolving payment disputes. To help us fulfill this role we’ll ask you to complete a ‘Card Dispute form’ form. This provides us with all the information we need to start our payment dispute process. You can find the form here. Once you have filled in the form you can email it to us at card.disputes@gsb.com.au, send it via secure message in Online Banking, or drop it in to your local Great Southern Bank Branch.
When considering your dispute, we may ask you to provide:
- Details of your attempts (if any) to resolve this with the merchant
- Evidence of goods being returned to the merchant
- Sales receipts or invoices
- Evidence of cancellation for trial payments
- Police reports (if any) for lost/stolen cards
We’ll keep you informed during the investigation, preferably by email or SMS (you’ll need to consent to this on the ‘Payment dispute/Payment recall’ form).
Once we initiate a dispute, the merchant will have up to 45 days to decline the dispute. They can only decline the dispute if they have sufficient evidence that the payment was authorised. In some instances Great Southern Bank may provide you an interim refund for the disputed payment while investigating the payment.
Should the dispute be found in your favour, you will be reimbursed for the transaction. If Great Southern Bank has already provided you with a refund, this will remain in your account. If your dispute is rejected, any refund Great Southern Bank has provided you with will be reversed and we will send you a copy of the evidence provided by the merchant.
ATM Disputes
Starting with the basics
Below is a general guide on what to do when you have attempted to withdraw funds from an ATM and have not been paid correctly.
Please notify Great Southern Bank immediately. We can then manage the claim on your behalf.
Different financial institutions may have different requirements when handling a payment dispute. To make the investigation as easy as possible, Great Southern Bank will need you to complete our ‘Card Dispute form’ form. This provides us with the information we need to start the dispute process. You can find the form here. Once you have filled in the form you can email it to us at card.disputes@gsb.com.au, send it via secure message in Online Banking, or drop it in to your local Great Southern Bank Branch.
We may ask you to produce details of the ATM which the transaction occurred at to support your payment dispute.
We’ll keep you informed during the investigation, preferably by email or SMS (you’ll need to consent to this on the ‘Payment dispute/Payment recall’ form).
Once we contact the ATM owner, they have 21 days to decline the dispute. They can only decline the dispute if they have sufficient evidence that there were no discrepancies with the ATM reconciling for that day.
Should the dispute be found in your favour, we will work with the ATM owner to credit the refund to your account. If your dispute is rejected, we will provide you with the evidence presented to support the ATM owner’s decision.
BPAY and Electronic Funds Transfer payment disputes
Starting with the basics
Below is a general guide on what to do when you have processed a payment incorrectly via BPAY or Online Banking.
There a several reasons why you may wish to have a payment recall made on your behalf. The following are common situations you may have found yourself in when requiring a payment recall;
- Mistaken Internet Payment (MIP)
- When transferring funds via Online or Mobile Banking, you enter incorrect account details
- Incorrect Information (Payee, Biller & Amount)
- When paying a bill via BPAY, a duplicated payment was made, an incorrect biller was used, an incorrect customer reference number was used or the incorrect amount was sent
Should you have made a payment to an incorrect payee/biller, it might be a good idea to contact the payee/biller directly.
If you require a payment recall, we will support you by recalling the payment on your behalf.
To help us recall your payment, please call 133 282 or drop into your local Great Southern Bank Branch and the team will help with the information we need to recall the payment.
During this process, we may ask you for details of the unintended payee, and the customer reference number used for BPAY transactions.
Once we receive all the information, our investigation in to your payment recall will commence. If we need further information to support your claim we’ll be in touch.
We’ll keep you informed during the investigation, preferably by email or SMS (you’ll need to consent to this when speaking with the team).
The sooner you tell us about the issue, the quicker we can help resolve it. There may also be negative consequences if you delay informing us about the payment - delays may improve the position of the wrongful recipient of your money.
Still need help?
If you have any questions or concerns, we’d be happy to help – just call us on 133 282 or email us at payment.disputes@gsb.com.au
Not happy with the outcome of your dispute or payment recall?
Unfortunately not all payment disputes and payment recalls will be successful. Although Great Southern Bank make every attempt to retrieve your funds, due to circumstances outside of our control, we are not always able to achieve a successful outcome for you.
Should you not be satisfied with the outcome of your payment dispute or recall, you are entitled to have your investigation reviewed by Great Southern Bank’s Customer Advocacy team. Your case can be submitted by writing to:
Customer Advocacy team
Great Southern Bank
GPO Box 100
Brisbane QLD 4001
If you are not satisfied with our final response, you may lodge a complaint with the Australian Financial Complaints Authority (AFCA):
Online: www.afca.org.au
Email: info@afca.org.au
Phone: 1800 931 678 (free call)
Mail: Australian Financial Complaints Authority, GPO Box 3, Melbourne VIC 3001
Time limits may apply to complain to AFCA and so you should act promptly or otherwise consult the AFCA website to find out if or when the time limit relevant to your circumstances expires.