The short answer
The Excessive Chargeback Program is Mastercard's monitoring framework for merchants whose dispute rate exceeds network thresholds. There are two tiers — Excessive Chargeback Merchant (ECM) at 1.5% and High Excessive Chargeback Merchant (HECM) at 3.0% — each with escalating monthly fines.
In plain English
Mastercard watches two numbers monthly: your chargeback count and your chargeback ratio (disputes divided by prior-month sales count). Cross either threshold for one month and your acquirer warns you. Cross them again and you're enrolled in ECM. Fines start at $0 for a grace month, then $25–$50 per chargeback, escalating with tenure in program.
The thresholds
- ECM (Excessive) — 100+ chargebacks AND 1.5% ratio in one month.
- HECM (High Excessive) — 300+ chargebacks AND 3.0% ratio in one month.
- Exit — one clean month for ECM, three for HECM (some acquirers require longer).
What operators need to know
- Ratio uses prior-month sales count as denominator — a sales dip with stable disputes can push you into ECM without actually getting more fraud.
- Chargeback fees are separate from ECP fines — you pay both.
- HECM escalates to monthly "review fees" on top of per-chargeback fines — $100K/month isn't unusual at scale.
- Ethoca + CDRS (Mastercard's version of RDR) can cancel disputes before they hit the ratio.
- ECP and VAMP run in parallel — you can be in one, the other, or both simultaneously.
- Termination — chronic HECM with no improvement leads to acquirer termination and a TMF listing.
Numbers to know
In-program fines historically range from $25/chargeback at month 1 to $100+/chargeback after 12 months. A merchant stuck in ECM with 200 disputes/month pays $5K–$20K/month in fines alone, before chargeback fees and lost revenue. HECM fines can exceed $100K/month plus termination risk.
Why multi-brand operators care
ECP is a per-MID measurement. Brands with subscription models, free-trial flows, or aggressive acquisition tactics generate far more disputes than clean e-commerce. Isolating those brands on dedicated MIDs protects your cleaner brands from inheriting fines and keeps the portfolio out of cascading program placements.