🔍 Overview
Some customers have experienced situations where a promised refund was only partially received, or where unexpected charges continued appearing after a refund was issued. This article explains why these issues occur, what to check on your end, and how to get them fully resolved.
⚠️ Why This Happens
Billing discrepancies on Search Atlas accounts are typically caused by one or more of the following known issues:
- Duplicate subscriptions in Stripe: In some cases, a billing error caused multiple active subscriptions to be created on the same account simultaneously. Each subscription then triggered its own recurring charge.
- Stacking recurring top-ups: Recurring top-up credits were not properly consolidated after a platform migration, causing them to stack and generate additional charges beyond what was expected.
- Partial refund processing: When a refund was calculated, it may not have accounted for all charges present on the account at that time — particularly if new charges were processed between when the refund was promised and when it was issued.
- Legacy billing conflicts: Customers who were on older pricing plans occasionally experienced duplicate billing events when their accounts were updated or when OTTO site pricing was adjusted.
✅ What a Full Resolution Includes
If you believe your refund is incomplete or you have been charged unexpectedly after a refund was promised, a complete resolution should cover all of the following:
- Full refund of the originally promised amount — the total agreed upon by our team, not a partial amount.
- Refund of any additional charges that were processed after the refund date or were not included in the original calculation.
- Cancellation of all active subscriptions on your account, if that was part of the agreement or if duplicate subscriptions were the source of the problem.
- Written confirmation from our team once all refunds have been processed and subscriptions have been cancelled.
🛠️ Steps to Take Right Now
- Gather your charge history. Log in to your Search Atlas account and note the dates and amounts of every charge you have received. If you have access to your Stripe receipts via email, collect those as well.
- Note the original refund promise. Locate any email, chat transcript, or message where the refund amount was confirmed by our team. Record the date it was promised and the exact amount stated.
- Calculate the gap. Compare the total amount you were charged against the total amount refunded so far. This gives you the outstanding balance to reference when contacting support.
- Contact our support team immediately. Our billing team has direct access to your Stripe account records and can identify all active subscriptions, duplicate charges, and unprocessed refunds in one review.
📋 Information to Have Ready
To help our team resolve your case as quickly as possible, have the following ready before starting a chat:
- Your Search Atlas account email address
- The date and amount of the original refund that was promised
- The amount you actually received
- Dates and amounts of any charges that appeared after the refund
- Any reference to previous support conversations where the refund was discussed
⏱️ Expected Resolution Time
Once our billing team has reviewed your account, most refund corrections and subscription cancellations are processed within 3–5 business days. Refunds typically appear on your original payment method within 5–10 business days depending on your bank or card issuer. Our team will confirm the timeline with you directly during your chat session.
💡 Preventing This in the Future
Once your account has been fully resolved, we recommend the following to avoid future billing surprises:
- After any refund is processed, check your payment method statement within 7 days to confirm the correct amount was received.
- If you are cancelling your account, ask our support team to confirm in writing that all subscriptions have been deactivated in Stripe.
- Save any chat transcripts or emails where refund amounts or cancellations are confirmed by our team.
💬 Get Help Now
If you have an incomplete refund or unexpected charges on your account, our billing team can investigate and resolve this for you directly. 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.