How do I handle customer disputes about points or rewards?

Introduction

Sometimes customers may contact you if they believe their points or rewards are missing, expired, or applied incorrectly. Roadmap provides tools to investigate, verify, and resolve disputes quickly, so you can maintain trust in your loyalty program.

Step 1: Verify the Customer’s Activity

1. In Shopify Admin → Apps → Roadmap → Loyalty, search for the customer.
2. Open their profile and check the Activity Log.
   • Earned points → Purchases, reviews, referrals, birthdays, etc.
   • Redemptions → Discounts, free products, bundles.
   • Adjustments → Any manual changes or expirations.

👉 This log usually explains why points were or weren’t awarded.

Step 2: Check Eligibility Rules

• Confirm whether the customer’s order or action met your program’s rules:
  • Was it their first purchase? (referrals only apply then).
  • Did they meet minimum spend requirements?
  • Was the reward limited to certain products/collections?
  • Was the order canceled or refunded? (points not awarded on invalid orders).

Step 3: Decide on Resolution

• If the customer was eligible, but points/reward didn’t apply:
  • Manually add points or re-issue the reward.
  • Log a reason (e.g. Missed automation, goodwill).
• If the customer was not eligible, explain clearly:
  • Example: “Referral rewards only apply for first-time customers — since your friend had already ordered, points weren’t awarded.”

👉 Transparency + clear rules help prevent future disputes.

Step 4: Adjust If Needed

• Use Adjust Balance in the customer profile to:
  • Add missing points.
  • Deduct incorrect points.
• If a reward failed (discount/free product), generate a manual reward in Shopify and sync with Roadmap.

Step 5: Communicate with the Customer

• Acknowledge the issue.
• Share what you found in the activity log.
• Explain program rules if they weren’t eligible.
• Confirm any adjustments or rewards you applied.

👉 Example: “We reviewed your order from Jan 12 — points didn’t apply because the item was in our clearance collection, which isn’t eligible. We’ve added 100 points as a goodwill gesture to thank you for your feedback.”

Best Practices

• ✅ Keep program rules visible in FAQs to reduce disputes.
• ✅ Always check the activity log before making changes.
• ✅ Use manual adjustments as a goodwill tool.
• ✅ Track dispute patterns — if many customers are confused, clarify your reward rules.

Common Questions

• Can I override Roadmap and give points manually?
  • Yes — use Adjust Balance to add points instantly.
• What if a customer insists on a reward they don’t qualify for?
  • You can deny politely with an explanation, or give a goodwill adjustment.
• Do customers see manual adjustments?
  • Yes — they’ll see the adjustment and reason in their activity history.
• Can I refund expired points?
  • Yes — you can manually add them back if you choose.

Summary

When handling disputes about loyalty points or rewards:

1. Check the customer’s activity log.
2. Review program eligibility rules.
3. Decide whether to adjust points/rewards.
4. Use Adjust Balance for manual corrections.
5. Clearly communicate findings and resolutions to the customer.

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