A Brisbane woman who set up a GoFundMe page has been hit with more than $300 in fees over disputed donations.
Cat Cuddle Cafe founder Katina Balson set up a page with GoFundMe on November 15 in an effort to raise $15,000 to cover vet costs for three kittens in her care that suffer from a forelimb abnormality.
She was required by the crowdsourcing platform to set up an account with Stripe, the platform's payment processor, to receive donations.
She had since received emails from Stripe notifying her that 11 donors had each disputed $100 charges made through the GoFundMe platform with their credit card companies.
According to Stripe's website, the company deducts the disputed amount along with a fee relating to a chargeback. A chargeback occurs when a cardholder successfully disputes a transaction processed by a business and has it reversed.
According to Stripe, the fee equates to $25, however Ms Balson was charged $33.20 for each of the 11 disputes, which has resulted in a loss of $365.20 from her donations so far.
It is understood the additional $8.20 was deducted to cover the processing costs of Stripe (1.75 per cent + 30 cents) and GoFundMe (5 per cent), which equals $7.05 per $100, not $8.20 per $100.
When asked about the processing fees, a Stripe spokesman told Fairfax Media the company couldn't comment on individual users or transactions for confidentiality reasons.
"In general, Stripe does everything we can to help our users be successful and minimise fraud," he said.
Ms Balson said she relied heavily on the donations to continue paying for the kittens' vet bills.
"We think we have so much money and we turn around and we have that money stripped away," she said.
"We are paying off vet bills and thinking we have this money to go, but then it is not there.
"That money ($356.20) would have paid for the desexing for two of the kittens."
The GoFundMe website states its fee is deducted in real time, which Ms Balson said she could see in a breakdown on her individual Stripe account.
"When I click on a $100 donation, the fee that comes up is $7.05," she said.
Ms Balson said she was not aware there was a processing fee charged on top of the chargeback amount in instances where a dispute was made.
She feared some of the disputes may be related to fraudulent activity and she had been given the opportunity to respond to the dispute.
If successful, the disputed amount, along with the fee, would be refunded to her account.
"I will dispute. Some of the disputes may be legitimate, some (donors) don't recognise their charges," she said.
"GoFundMe has a team of experts that work around the clock with organisers and donors to answer any questions they may have," a statement read.
"We are working with our payment processor to ensure the campaign organiser receives the funds raised."
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