## 🔍 Why You May See a Charge After Cancelling

If you cancelled your Search Atlas subscription but still received a charge, this can feel frustrating and confusing. There are a few common reasons this happens, and in most cases the issue can be identified and resolved quickly.

- **End-of-cycle billing:** Search Atlas subscriptions are billed at the start of each billing cycle. If your cancellation was processed after a new cycle had already begun, a charge for that period may have been applied before the cancellation took effect.
- **Cancellation timing:** A cancellation request submitted close to your renewal date may not prevent the charge if the payment was already queued or processed by our payment provider.
- **Duplicate subscription:** In rare cases, a system error can create a duplicate subscription — meaning your account was charged on two separate billing records. This is a known issue that our team can identify and correct.
- **Add-on or top-up charges:** Add-ons such as OTTO top-ups are customer-level billing subscriptions that keep billing until cancelled separately (Profile avatar → Billing → Services → ⋮ menu on the top-up → Cancel), or until your main plan's cancellation takes effect at the end of the billing period, which cancels its top-ups automatically. Deleting an OTTO site project or using Deep Freeze does not cancel the top-up.
- **Multiple payment methods:** If your account was connected to more than one payment source (for example, both a Shopify integration and a credit card), charges may appear on both. Our team can investigate and consolidate these records.

## ✅ What to Check Before Contacting Support

Before reaching out, gather the following details to help our team resolve your dispute as fast as possible:

1. **Your cancellation confirmation:** Check your email inbox for a cancellation confirmation from Search Atlas. Note the date and time it was sent.
2. **The charge date and amount:** Locate the transaction in your bank statement or payment platform and note the exact date, amount, and payment method used.
3. **Your billing cycle dates:** If you can access your account, check your billing history by clicking your **Avatar** (top-right corner) → **Billing** (Billing page) to see when your last cycle started and ended.
4. **Any additional charges:** Note whether more than one unexpected charge appeared, or whether the same amount repeated across multiple months.

## 💡 How Refunds Are Handled

Search Atlas reviews billing disputes on a case-by-case basis. If a charge occurred in error — for example, due to a duplicate subscription, a system-side cancellation failure, or a charge that processed after a confirmed cancellation — our billing team will issue a refund to your original payment method.

Refunds typically take **5–10 business days** to appear on your statement, depending on your bank or payment provider. If you were charged multiple times in error over several months, our team will investigate the full billing history and resolve all affected transactions.



## 🛠️ How to Submit a Billing Dispute

To get your dispute resolved quickly, follow these steps:

1. Open the Search Atlas platform and log in to your account.
2. Click the **chat widget** in the bottom-right corner of the screen.
3. Type **human teammate** to be connected with a member of our support team.
4. Share the details you gathered: cancellation confirmation date, charge date, charge amount, and payment method.
5. Our team will investigate your billing record, confirm whether the charge was an error, and process a refund if applicable.

## 🚫 How to Avoid This in the Future

To reduce the chance of unexpected charges after cancelling:

- **Cancel at least 48 hours before your renewal date** to give our system time to process the request before the next billing cycle begins.
- **Save your cancellation confirmation email** as proof of the date your cancellation was submitted.
- **Check your billing settings** after cancelling to confirm no active subscriptions or add-ons remain on your account.
- **Contact support immediately** if you are unsure whether your cancellation went through — our team can verify your account status in real time.

If you need further assistance, open the chat widget in the bottom-right corner of the platform and type **human teammate** to be connected with a member of our team.