Procedures for handling and correcting errors, tracking requests, and complaints in payment transactions and payment intermediary in Vietnam from July 1, 2024

Procedures for handling and correcting errors, tracking requests, and complaints in payment transactions and payment intermediary in Vietnam from July 1, 2024 (Internet image)

On June 28, 2024, the Governor of the State Bank of Vietnam issued Circular 15/2024/TT-NHNN regulating the provision of cashless payment services in Vietnam.

Procedures for handling and correcting errors, tracking requests, and complaints in payment transactions and payment intermediary in Vietnam from July 1, 2024

Article 6 of Circular 15/2024/TT-NHNN guides the process for handling and adjusting errors, investigations, and complaints in payment transactions and intermediary payment services as follows:

- When an error or discrepancy in the transfer amount is detected (collectively referred to as errors), the involved parties must take corrective measures as prescribed to ensure accurate and consistent data, avoiding impact on the transfer operations or causing damage to the payment service provider, intermediary payment service provider, and/or the customer. The adjustment of errors in money transfer must ensure the following principles:

• Strictly adhere to the regulations and methods of error adjustment in accounting and money transfer payment: errors at any stage must be corrected at that stage, and data should not be adjusted arbitrarily;

• Individuals or organizations causing errors or violating regulations and methods of error adjustment, depending on the nature and severity, will be dealt with and required to compensate for damages caused to the involved parties as per legal regulations.

- Payment service providers and intermediary payment service providers must specify the time period for customers to request investigations and complaints, but no less than 60 days from the date of the transaction requiring investigation.

- Payment service providers and intermediary payment service providers are responsible for handling customer service investigation and complaint requests, ensuring compliance with at least the following regulations:

• Apply at least two forms of receiving investigation and complaint information through a telephone hotline (with recording, operating 24/7) and through legal transaction points of the payment service provider, intermediary payment service provider; ensure authentication of the basic information provided by the customer to the payment service provider, intermediary payment service provider;

• Issue investigation and complaint request forms (paper and electronic) for customers to use when requesting investigations and complaints at the transaction points of the payment service provider, intermediary payment service provider, or online channel. In case of receiving information through a telephone hotline or online channel, payment service providers and intermediary payment service providers must require customers to provide necessary information for customer verification, store customer information to serve as a basis for handling investigations and complaints. If authorizing another person to request an investigation, that authorization must follow legal regulations on authorization;

Immediately take measures to temporarily suspend service provision when the customer requests it due to suspicion of fraud or loss and be responsible for any financial losses incurred by the customer after the request to suspend service provision.

• Payment service providers and intermediary payment service providers are responsible for promptly responding to or addressing customer complaints within the period agreed upon but not exceeding 30 working days from the receipt of the customer's complaint request according to stipulations in point a, paragraph 2 of Article 6 of Circular 15/2024/TT-NHNN;

- Results processing for investigation and complaint handling:

• Within a maximum of 05 working days from the date of notifying the result of the investigation or handling complaints to the customer, the payment service provider, and intermediary payment service provider will compensate the losses to the customer as agreed and as per the current legal regulations for losses incurred not due to the customer's fault and/or not in cases of force majeure as agreed in the terms and conditions of service usage;

• If after the investigation and complaint resolution period specified in paragraph 3 Article 6 of Circular 15/2024/TT-NHNN, the cause or fault is still undetermined, within the next 15 working days, the payment service provider and intermediary payment service provider will agree with the customer on a handling method; if no agreement is reached, the dispute resolution will follow legal regulations.

- If any criminal activity is suspected, the payment service provider and intermediary payment service provider must report the incident to the competent state authority as per criminal procedure laws and notify the State Bank (Payment Department, the State Bank branch in the locality) in writing; simultaneously, inform the customer in writing about the status of the investigation and complaint handling request. If the competent state authority determines there is no criminal element, within 15 working days from the conclusion by the state authority, the payment service provider, and intermediary payment service provider must agree with the customer on the method to handle the investigation and complaint results.

- Payment service providers and intermediary payment service providers must provide solutions for customers to access online information about the investigation, its progress, and the result.

- Coordinating investigations between payment service providers:

Payment service providers must cooperate to handle investigation requests promptly in clearings and collections: within 04 working days from the receipt of the investigation request, the recipient of the request must respond to the requester or return the payment order with investigation information.

More details can be found in Circular 15/2024/TT-NHNN effective in Vietnam from July 1, 2024, except for the provisions in paragraph 2 Article 22 of Circular 15/2024/TT-NHNN.

To Quoc Trinh

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