Freelancing feels freeing until someone decides to steal from you and call it a dispute.
Here’s how the scam works: you do the work, they pay, you deliver — then they go to their bank or credit card company and claim the charge was unauthorized. Maybe they say they never approved the project. Maybe they pretend their card was stolen. The bank initiates an inquiry, you get notified, and suddenly you’re the one who has to prove you weren’t the bad guy.
And here’s the brutal part — when a chargeback is filed, the bank gives you a window to contest it by submitting evidence. Contracts, messages, emails, proof of delivery — that’s your whole case. If you don’t have those things, you have almost nothing to submit. And with nothing to submit, you lose.
Platforms like Fiverr have their own layer of this. According to Fiverr’s own help center, if you’re a freelancer and a chargeback gets filed, the funds can be pulled from your account while it’s investigated. They say they’ll try to help resolve it in your favor if you fully delivered the work — but that protection isn’t guaranteed, and the final call can still go against you even after the initial review.
Not every chargeback is a scam, to be fair. Some chargebacks happen because an actual fraudster stole a client’s card info and used it to hire you — which means your real client never knew the transaction happened at all. That’s not your fault, but you can still end up losing the money.
So what actually protects you?
A written contract. Timestamped messages. Emails confirming the scope of work. Screenshots of approvals. A clear record that a real human on the other side said “yes, do this work, I’m paying you for it.” That’s the paper trail that gives you the best chance in a dispute — and without it, any claim of “I never authorized this” becomes very hard to disprove. Keep in mind that even strong documentation doesn’t guarantee a win every time, since banks and card networks make the final call, but solid evidence is your most important tool.
You don’t need a fancy lawyer-drafted document to start. Even a simple written agreement — sent over email and confirmed — is infinitely better than nothing. Tools like Hello Bonsai exist specifically to help freelancers create contracts that hold up when things go sideways.
Bottom line: do not start work without something in writing. Not for friends, not for “quick jobs,” not for anyone. One bad chargeback can wipe out weeks of income in minutes.