Episode Details

Chargebacks were built to protect consumers from stolen cards and crooked merchants. Now they’re increasingly used when a subscription surprises someone, a restaurant disappoints, or buyer’s remorse sets in. Don and Tom sort real fraud from “friendly fraud”—and explain why the first call should usually go to the merchant, not the bank.

They also look at confusing statement names, recurring subscriptions, the cost merchants absorb when a dispute lands, and why credit cards generally provide stronger consumer protection than debit cards.

Then it’s listener-question time: a free-dinner annuity pitch promising 12% to 15%, whether to bunch charitable gifts, dialing a retirement portfolio from 60/40 to 50/50, and using RMD withdrawals to rebalance at Vanguard.

0:38 — From 1929 bucket shops to today’s prediction markets
3:21 — Chargebacks, card fees and “friendly fraud”
7:06 — Mystery merchant names and subscription confusion
8:25 — Bad service, buyer’s remorse and the fraud line
11:10 — When a chargeback is legitimate
13:28 — Why merchants lose most disputes
16:59 — Listener questions begin
17:30 — The free-dinner annuity pitch
22:49 — Should you bunch charitable gifts?
24:06 — 60/40 or 50/50 before Social Security?
26:06 — RMD withdrawals and Vanguard rebalancing

Questions? Comments? Click!