Start with state
A customer saying “my money is missing” describes an experience, not a transaction state. Determine whether funds are held by an authorisation, captured for processing, or settled. The available corrective operation depends on that state and on the provider’s supported workflow.
Release versus return
An authorisation reversal communicates that an earlier authorisation should be released, where supported. A refund returns value against a processed payment. Calling both operations a refund obscures what actually happened and can lead support teams to promise the wrong kind of resolution.
A cancelled order
Suppose an order is cancelled before capture. The team confirms an outstanding authorisation and submits the appropriate reversal linked to that payment. They should then distinguish acceptance of the reversal request from the time the customer’s bank updates the visible available balance.
Close the operational loop
Keep the original reference, correction reference, requested amount, response and final observed state. Partial operations need particular care. Tell the customer which action was taken without inventing a universal bank deadline, and reconcile the correction before treating the case as fully closed internally.