Fraud-Proof Refund Approval Workflow with Webhook API

Fraud-Proof Refund Approval in n8n—Powered by a Webhook API

This n8n workflow receives refund investigation requests via a webhook, evaluates fraud risk, routes cases through multi-level approvals, attempts to execute the refund (or record a rejection), and returns a final approve/reject decision with a clear audit trail.

What this workflow does

• Receives refund investigations via Webhook: Accepts a POST payload at the webhook path /refund-investigation.
• Validates inputs + computes an internal fraud risk score: Checks required fields such as paymentId, amount, and customerId, then determines whether Level 1 and Level 2 approvals are required.
• Calls an external fraud/risk scoring endpoint: Sends the case to a configurable HTTP endpoint and captures the response status for the decision record.
• Performs multi-level approval via HTTP endpoints: Submits the case to a Level 1 approver endpoint, and if required, a Level 2 approver endpoint.
• Attempts refund processing or records rejection: Calls a dedicated processing endpoint intended to execute the refund or record a rejection at the payment gateway.
• Returns a final decision + audit trail: Aggregates fraud check, approvals, and processing results into a single approve/reject response.

Use cases

• SaaS refund handling: Automatically route refund investigations to the right approval level based on fraud risk.
• E-commerce fraud prevention: Block high-risk refund requests by requiring Level 2 approval.
• Payment gateway operations: Standardize how refund approvals trigger downstream refund execution or rejection recording.

Technical details

• Webhook endpoint: Receives requests and responds with the final decision.
• Nodes used: code, wait, webhook, sticky note, http request, respond to webhook.
• Config required: Replace placeholder httpbin.org URLs with your real fraud scoring service, Level 1 approver, Level 2 approver, and refund processing endpoints.
• Authentication: Add required HTTP Request credentials/headers (e.g., API keys or OAuth2) to the HTTP Request steps.