## 🔍 What Is a Duplicate Billing Charge?

A duplicate charge occurs when your account is billed more than once for the same subscription period or plan. This can happen when a previous subscription was not fully cancelled before a new one was created, or when a plan upgrade or checkout flow generates an additional charge alongside your existing one.

Common scenarios include:

- Being billed for an old plan and a new plan at the same time after upgrading
- A cancelled subscription that continued generating charges
- Multiple subscriptions created in the same account during re-checkout
- A plan downgrade or cancellation that was not fully synced in our billing system

## 🧾 How to Identify a Duplicate Charge

Before reaching out, confirm that the charge is genuinely a duplicate rather than a scheduled renewal or a prorated adjustment. Here is how to check:

1. Log in to your Search Atlas account and navigate to your **Avatar** (top-right corner) → **Billing** (Billing page).
2. Review the list of recent transactions and note the date, amount, and plan name for each charge.
3. Compare any two charges that appear close together. A duplicate will show the same or a very similar amount billed within the same billing cycle for the same plan tier.
4. Check whether both charges reference the same subscription or two different subscription IDs — two distinct IDs for the same plan is a strong indicator of duplication.

If you see a charge for a plan you cancelled and a separate charge for your current active plan in the same period, the cancelled plan charge is likely the duplicate.



## ⚠️ Common Causes Behind Duplicate Charges

Understanding why this happens can help prevent it in the future:

- **Re-checkout after a past-due status:** If your account entered a past-due state and you completed a new checkout, the system may have created a second subscription alongside the original one.
- **Upgrade not fully applied:** In some cases, a plan upgrade is processed as a new subscription without closing the previous one, resulting in two active subscriptions.
- **Cancellation sync delay:** A cancellation request may not immediately propagate through our billing provider, causing one additional charge before the subscription fully closes.
- **Admin-initiated changes:** Subscription changes made from the admin side can occasionally create a second base subscription if the original is not deactivated first.

## ✅ What to Do If You Were Charged Twice

1. **Gather your charge details:** Note the exact amounts, dates, and any transaction or invoice IDs visible in your billing history. For example, if you see a $199 charge and a $209 charge for the same period, identify which one corresponds to your active plan.
2. **Do not cancel your active subscription:** Only the erroneous charge should be removed. Cancelling the wrong subscription could interrupt your service.
3. **Contact our support team immediately:** Refunds and subscription corrections must be handled by our team directly. Open the live chat widget and type **human teammate** to be connected.
4. **Share the following information with the agent:**

- The amount and date of the correct charge (the one you want to keep)
- The amount and date of the duplicate charge (the one to be refunded)
- Your account email address
- Any invoice or transaction IDs from your billing page

Our team will verify the duplicate in our billing system, remove the erroneous subscription, and process the refund to your original payment method.



## ⏱️ How Long Does a Refund Take?

Once our team confirms the duplicate and initiates the refund, processing times depend on your payment provider:

- **Credit or debit cards:** Typically 5–10 business days to appear on your statement.
- **Other payment methods:** May vary; your agent will confirm the expected timeline.

You will receive a confirmation from our team once the refund has been issued.



## 🛡️ How to Prevent Duplicate Charges in the Future

- Always confirm a cancellation by checking that the subscription status shows as **Cancelled** in your billing settings before starting a new plan.
- After upgrading, verify that only one active subscription appears under **Avatar** (top-right corner) → **Billing**.
- If your account goes past due, contact support before completing a new checkout to ensure the old subscription is properly closed first.
- Save your invoice emails so you can quickly compare charges if something looks unfamiliar.

## 💬 Still Need Help?

If you believe you have been charged in error or need a refund processed, our team is ready to help. 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.