> ## Documentation Index > Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://faq.universalaccountservicing.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further. # Refunds and credit balances > When money comes back to you, how it is returned, and how long it takes. ## Where a refund goes A refund goes back to **the card or bank account it came from**. We do not send it somewhere else unless that method has closed, or the law requires otherwise. That means a refund on a credit card appears as a credit on that card, not as money in your checking account, and how quickly your bank shows it is up to them. ## How long it takes | Situation | Timing | | --------------------------------------------------------------------- | ------------------------------------------------ | | Your account has a credit balance and you ask for it back | Within **10 calendar days** of your request | | A refund approved after a support request, a cancellation or a return | Promptly once approved, generally within 10 days | | We took a payment in error | **Immediately, without you having to ask** | ## If we took a payment in error You do not have to request anything, and you should not be left carrying any part of it. When a payment is taken in error — by us or by a company working for us — we return it as soon as we find it, in the same way it was taken, and we reverse: * any fee it caused, including a late fee * any interest it caused * any past-due status it caused If a returned payment fee was charged because something went wrong on our side, that fee is waived. ## If you overpaid You can pay ahead or pay off your balance at any time, and **there is no prepayment penalty**. Paying online or by phone will not let you go past your balance — the system stops you. An overpayment usually happens when a check arrives after the account was already settled. When that leaves a credit balance, ask us for it and we will return it. You do not have to ask — a credit balance is returned to you within 60 days either way — but asking is faster. Have your Account Number and the date of the payment. ## If you returned what you bought Whether a refund is owed at all is a question for the business you bought from, not for us. They hold the returns policy and they decide. Once a return or cancellation is agreed, we adjust your account: the balance comes down, and on a fixed-term contract you get a revised payment amount and updated disclosures for the remaining term. If money is owed back to you rather than off your balance, it is refunded the way this page describes. Start with the seller, then [open a support request](/getting-help/opening-a-support-request) under **Product or Service** so there is a record. ## A refund is not the same as a dispute If you want to challenge a charge rather than get money back on one you agree with, see [Disputing a charge](/getting-help/disputing-a-charge). You can also dispute a charge with your bank or card issuer. That is your right, and using it is not held against you. It runs on your bank's timetable rather than ours, so if what you want is the money back on a payment we both agree was wrong, coming to us directly is usually quicker.