#111: Reducing Hotel Chargebacks & Payment Fraud | with Theresa Ellsworth

In this episode of The Modern Hotelier, recorded at The Hospitality Show, Theresa Ellsworth from Certify discusses her journey into hospitality technology and Certify's role in streamlining hotel operations. She explains how Certify digitizes third-party credit card authorization forms, digital signatures, and payments to help hotels recognize revenue faster and prevent chargebacks. Ellsworth details the types of fraud hoteliers face—criminal, friendly, and chargeback fraud—and offers prevention tips, including digitizing authorization processes, collecting CVV numbers, and taking deposits using 3D Secure (3DS). She highlights Certify's AI-powered fraud tools, which use machine learning to score credit card legitimacy, and advises hoteliers to communicate with guests about chargebacks and utilize early alert systems. Ellsworth also notes the financial benefits of using Certify's e-commerce merchant ID for lower transaction fees.