Rogue Google support asked customer to charge Google back, getting his account terminated.
Posted: Fri May 29, 2026 12:51 pm
If there is one thing Google doesn't like, it's a juicy chargeback.
From Reddit: TIFU by accidentally buying two Google Pixels and ended up getting my 15 year old Google Account permanently banned.
He apparently didn't understand the implications of a "chargeback". Perhaps he thought it is just a different word for a refund?
From Reddit: TIFU by accidentally buying two Google Pixels and ended up getting my 15 year old Google Account permanently banned.
Linked from DANGER!!!: Chargeback = ACCOUNT PERMANENTLY BANNED - Virtual CuriositiesjustAnotherLedditor wrote: So early Black Friday sales happened last month and I picked up a Google Pixel 7 since my previous phone was nearing 6 years old and starting to die every few hours.
Due to some funky error, whether I accidentally put two phones in the cart, I don't know or remember. I ended up getting double charged and realized I got shipped two phones.
I contacted Google Support to start a return for a refund on one of them, and the first support person was great... up until the next dozen support staff throughout this stupid journey.
Turns out that the package I shipped back to them never made it back. I spoke with support and I got the most generic responses ever from a person that doesn't speak English (once they stopped making generic replies, it was quite evident).
They escalated the problem to a supervisor. The supervisor told me that they would do an investigation, would take about a week.
Beginning of this week, investigation ended. They say the package was indeed most likely lost but the representative I spoke to said I could just chargeback with my credit card. So I did.
Today, my Google account was banned. 15 years of history gone.
I went on the support chat for the umpteenth time and they told me because I did a chargeback, the rules are that my account will be banned. I asked why they suggest for me to do a chargeback, when they could have just refunded themselves, and they said the support I spoke to should never have suggested it but rules are rules.
Been trying to fight this but looks like Google support is utter trash. After looking online, it seems like this is their most stupidest policy, and it exists across most other platforms too.
What a shitshow.
TLDR: Bought two phones by accident, returned one of them, package was lost and a representative told me to do a chargeback if I wanted my money back. Did that, Google account got banned. I asked very politely to get it unbanned because it was their advice to do that, they told me to go pound sand.
He apparently didn't understand the implications of a "chargeback". Perhaps he thought it is just a different word for a refund?
Chargeback
(Of course, I don't wish this experience upon someone.)