Reason code · American Express
Amex R13: no reply
R13 means Amex didn’t receive your reply to its inquiry by the due date, or it arrived late. The money comes back to you only if you can prove you replied in time, or show a refund already processed.
What R13 means
R13 means Amex asked for your side and didn’t hear back in time. An inquiry is Amex’s request for documents before any money moves. Amex’s guide lists two causes:
- No reply was sent, or it never reached Amex, intentionally or not.
- The reply arrived after the due date.
Either way, Amex treats the silence as an answer and charges the amount back.
Where it comes from
R13 always follows an inquiry; Checkout.com marks it as requiring one first. The customer’s original complaint might have been easy to answer. It never got answered.
Time limit
Processor guides list R13 at 120 days from the transaction date.
Your side of the clock is short. Amex’s own guide tells merchants to respond within 20 days. If you accept Amex through a processor such as Stripe or Square, the processor sets its own date, often a shorter one. The due date on your notice is the one that counts.
What proof matters
Amex accepts proof you responded to the original inquiry within the time frame, or proof a refund already offsets the charge. So the useful evidence is a dated upload confirmation, a fax receipt or a portal record showing you replied before the deadline.
Keep the receipt for your reply
Here’s the quiet lesson of R13: the proof that saves you isn’t about the customer at all. It’s about you. Whenever you reply to an inquiry, save the confirmation screen or receipt with its date and time. If Amex says it never arrived, that record is your only argument.
And if you agree the customer is owed the money, Amex’s guide says to reply by the due date authorizing the chargeback. Silence costs the same money and leaves a worse record.
The common mistake
Treating an inquiry as optional because nothing has been debited yet. Amex’s disputes map is direct: no timely reply, and your account is debited.
Dispute Daddy builds this for you
Upload the notice and your records. Dispute Daddy builds a response around the reason Amex actually gave, and you approve it before you submit. See how the method works.
