I'd think for an amount that large the credit card company would seek your input before taking the money back? I think if its small enough the credit card just takes the hit and the merchant keeps their money and the payer gets reimbursed. What happened in this case? Did they give you a certain time frame to respond and you didn't post? Did they not like your answer? If they just took the money without contacting you then you probably have a decent case if this has never happened to you before.