Yes. A follower can contact their card issuer and file a chargeback even after a creator delivers a Personalized Video or custom request, because the dispute goes through the follower's bank, not through the creator. Delivery doesn't block the request — it becomes the creator's evidence when responding to it. That's a different situation from a follower paying for work that never gets finished at all — see what happens if a follower pays and you can't deliver for that case. Personalized Videos let a follower pay upfront for one personalized video for themselves or someone they care about: you set the price and the delivery time, then record it on your schedule.
No monthly fee, you only pay a small platform fee when you get paid. 8% platform fee when a follower pays for work, 5% platform fee on tips and goals. Card processing is separate. No follower account needed: you set a fixed price, and each Personalized Video or custom request is a one-time purchase rather than a membership (pricing).
A refund and a chargeback are two different money movements. A refund is money you choose to return. A chargeback starts when a follower asks their bank to reverse a payment, and the bank then asks for evidence that the order was legitimate and delivered.
What's the difference between a refund and a chargeback?
A refund is a creator-initiated return of funds; a chargeback is a bank-initiated reversal a creator only gets to answer after the money has already left the balance. With a refund, the creator decides the outcome. With a chargeback, the follower's card issuer decides, weighing evidence sent by both sides. Both can happen after delivery.
For Personalized Videos and Custom Work, followers pay upfront and you deliver later, and you can decline a request before you accept it. A chargeback is different: it isn't a choice either side makes, it's the follower's bank stepping in. Stripe's documentation defines a dispute as the moment "an account owner contacts their bank to contest a payment to you for a number of possible reasons" (Stripe, How disputes work), and Stripe debits the disputed amount plus a dispute fee from the creator's balance at that moment — a reminder that a Stripe balance isn't the same as cash in hand, which is worth knowing alongside when creators actually get paid after a sale.
Brillay's general approach to declining and refunding an order is covered elsewhere; this page is specifically about the card-network route a follower can take instead of asking the creator.
Does delivering the work stop a follower from disputing the charge?
No. After you deliver a Personalized Video or custom request, a follower can still file a card dispute. Card networks typically allow cardholders to initiate disputes within 120 days of the original payment (Stripe). Delivery becomes the creator's evidence rather than a shield.
That 120-day figure is an outer limit, not a waiting period. Stripe's rule reads "within 120 days of the original payment," so a follower can call their issuer as soon as the charge posts to their statement — hours after checkout, not only near the end of the window. A creator should assume a dispute can arrive on a same-week order, not just on an old one.
For a US cardholder specifically, the Fair Credit Billing Act adds a separate written deadline. The FTC describes the FCBA as "federal law" that "sets out a dispute process to help you get those mistakes fixed on credit cards and revolving charge accounts" (FTC, Using Credit Cards and Disputing Charges):
"Send your letter so that it reaches the issuer within 60 days after the first bill with the error was sent to you." (FTC)
That 60-day rule is US-only. It comes from a United States federal statute and does not govern a follower paying from another country, where local consumer-protection law and the card network's own rules apply instead.
What are the dispute timelines and fees at a glance?
Six numbers govern a Brillay dispute: the follower's filing window, the creator's response window, the issuer's review window, the Stripe dispute fee, Brillay's platform fee, and the delivery time the creator promised. Card networks and Stripe set the first four. Brillay sets only the last two. Every figure below carries its primary source.
| Item | Figure | Primary source |
|---|---|---|
| Cardholder dispute filing window | Typically within 120 days of the original payment | Stripe, How disputes work — "Dispute timing" |
| US billing-error letter deadline (US only) | 60 days after the first bill with the error was sent | FTC, Using Credit Cards and Disputing Charges |
| Creator's window to send evidence | Usually 7–21 days, depending on the card network | Stripe, How disputes work — "Dispute timing" |
| Card issuer's review window | Usually 60–75 days, depending on the card network | Stripe, How disputes work — "Dispute timing" |
| Full dispute lifecycle | 2–3 months from initiation to final decision | Stripe, How disputes work — "Dispute timing" |
| Stripe dispute received fee (US) | USD 15, charged when the dispute opens | Stripe, June 2025 pricing updates for disputes |
| Stripe dispute countered fee (US) | USD 15, returned by Stripe if the business wins | Stripe, How disputes work — "Dispute fees" |
| Brillay platform fee | Stated in the fee line near the top of this page | Brillay pricing |
| Brillay Personalized Videos / Service delivery time | Set by the creator, up to 5 days | Brillay, how it works |
Fees and windows in this table are set by Stripe and the card networks, not by Brillay. The only two rows Brillay controls are its own platform fee, already stated above, and the delivery time cap a creator picks at setup.
Why would a follower dispute a charge instead of asking the creator?
A follower may go to their bank instead of the creator because it feels faster, because they don't recognize the billing descriptor, or because they're unsatisfied and skip straight to the issuer. Fraud claims dominate the category: "fraudulent disputes account for over half of all disputes" (Stripe, Dispute evidence best practices).
Common triggers include an unrecognized statement descriptor, genuine dissatisfaction with a delivered Personalized Video or Custom Work, a shared card where someone else made the purchase, or buyer's remorse filed as "unauthorized." A follower who goes straight to their bank skips the order-support option available after delivery, where the creator may be able to answer an order question or choose to issue a refund.
| Follower's path | Who decides | Who reviews evidence |
|---|---|---|
| Order support on Brillay | Creator | Creator |
| Creator decline & refund | Creator | N/A — creator's choice |
| Card dispute (chargeback) | Follower's card issuer | Card issuer, using both sides' evidence |
The follower's card issuer reviews the evidence and decides who wins a card dispute. Section 7 of the Purchases, Support & Refunds policy (version 1.0, last updated 2026-07-25) lists "whether a creator should grant a discretionary refund" among the matters Brillay "does not ordinarily determine".
How long does a creator have to respond to a dispute?
A creator typically has 7 to 21 days to submit evidence on a filed dispute, and the card issuer then takes 60 to 75 days to review it and decide. Stripe puts the full lifecycle at 2–3 months from initiation to final decision. The exact windows depend on the card network.
"After a chargeback is created, you have a limited time to respond to the card issuer: usually 7-21 days, depending on the card network. If you submit evidence, the issuer has a limited time to evaluate it and decide the outcome: usually 60-75 days, depending on the card network." (Stripe)
Brillay's published policy assigns the response to the creator directly:
"Payment disputes concerning a creator's sale are handled through Stripe and the creator's connected payment account. The creator is responsible for responding to the dispute and submitting relevant evidence."
You are responsible for answering the dispute, so follow the notice you receive and send your evidence before its deadline. The same policy section notes that Brillay "may preserve and provide transaction records, listing information, order instructions, delivery records, messages, timestamps, and other relevant platform evidence as permitted by law" — records to hand the creator, not a verdict.
Does a creator lose money just from a dispute being filed?
Yes. Stripe debits the disputed amount plus a dispute fee from the account balance the moment a cardholder files. The dispute received fee is USD 15 for a US business (Stripe), and it is charged regardless of the eventual outcome.
Whether that fee comes back depends on the business's country, and Stripe states the rule directly:
"For businesses outside Mexico, the fee for receiving a dispute is non-refundable. For businesses in Mexico, the fee for receiving a dispute might be returned if you win or the cardholder withdraws. Businesses in the Single Euro Payments Area (SEPA) incur no fee for receiving a dispute on a card payment processed on the Cartes Bancaires network." (Stripe)
A second fee applies if the creator fights the claim. Stripe charges a dispute countered fee of USD 15 for a US business on top of the received fee, and Stripe "returns the dispute countered fee if you win the dispute". The countered fee does not apply to businesses in Mexico and Japan. A creator outside the US should read their own country's row on the Stripe pricing page rather than assuming the USD 15 figures.
None of this is a Brillay charge — it's separate from the platform fee stated above.
What actually protects a creator once a dispute is filed?
Evidence protects a creator when it includes order details, delivery timestamps, and private messages showing what was asked for and what was sent. Nothing guarantees a win: the follower's card issuer makes the final decision based on the evidence submitted.
Useful evidence for a Personalized Video or custom request dispute includes what the follower ordered, the agreed price and delivery time, proof of what you delivered and when, and any post-delivery support messages tied to the order. All of that already exists in the order when a creator delivers through Brillay instead of a side channel like a DM. Stripe caps the combined evidence file at 4.5 MB and fewer than 50 pages, so a tight record beats a large one.
Stripe warns that even a partially refunded payment may still be disputed, so refunding does not guarantee that a chargeback will be avoided. A refunded or partially refunded transaction can still draw an inquiry or a chargeback in some cases.
What should a creator do the moment a dispute notice arrives?
Read the dispute reason, gather the order record, and respond before the deadline. A missed response window is treated as a loss regardless of whether the work was delivered. Stripe notes that dispute activity is "calculated based on the disputes received, not won or lost".
- Read the dispute reason. "Product not received" needs delivery proof; "not as described" needs the original order scope; "unauthorized" needs proof the payment method holder made the purchase.
- Pull the order record. Include request details, price, delivery time, delivery timestamp, and private message history.
- Respond inside the deadline shown for that dispute, which Stripe puts at usually 7–21 days depending on the card network.
- Don't attempt a separate refund on a disputed charge. Stripe states plainly that "you can't issue a refund outside the dispute process while the dispute is open".
Frequently asked questions
Can a follower get their money back after a Personalized Video is already delivered?
A follower can still file a card dispute after delivery, but delivering the work gives the creator a timestamped record of what was requested and what was sent. Whether the issuer sides with the creator depends on that evidence, not on whether delivery happened.
Is a chargeback the same thing as a refund on Brillay?
No. A chargeback is initiated by the follower's card issuer and decided by that issuer, independent of what the creator wants.
Does Brillay decide who wins a payment dispute?
No. Brillay's Contact page explains that a creator's payment disputes, verification, and payouts are handled through Stripe inside the creator's own connected Payments & payouts account — Brillay does not decide the outcome.
How long after payment can a follower still dispute the charge?
Card networks typically allow a dispute to be opened within 120 days of the original payment (Stripe). A cardholder does not have to wait — the 120 days is a maximum, and a dispute can be filed as soon as the charge posts.
Is the 60-day Fair Credit Billing Act deadline the same everywhere?
No. The 60-day written billing-error deadline is US-only, set by a United States federal statute and described by the FTC as reaching the issuer "within 60 days after the first bill with the error was sent to you". A follower paying from outside the United States is covered by local law and card-network rules instead.
Does a dispute cost the creator anything even if they win?
For a US business, Stripe charges a USD 15 dispute received fee when the dispute opens and, per Stripe, "for businesses outside Mexico, the fee for receiving a dispute is non-refundable". The separate USD 15 dispute countered fee is returned if the creator wins, and the disputed charge amount is returned as well.
Can a refunded order still turn into a dispute?
Sometimes. Stripe says a customer can dispute the full payment even after receiving a partial refund, so refunding may reduce the risk but does not eliminate it. Refunding early lowers the risk substantially; it does not eliminate it.
Keep reading
New in the library
Ready to get paid for the interactions you already get?
Create your free Brillay link