How to get a Google Ads refund

The full process for claiming invalid-click credits from Google — finding what's already been credited, building evidence with ClickFortify, and submitting a manual investigation.

Google Ads has a refund policy for invalid clicks, but it works in two different ways. Most advertisers only know about one and miss money as a result.

Google only accepts manual investigation requests for traffic within the last 60 days. If you suspect fraud, act now — waiting means losing your right to claim.

Google's systems continuously monitor traffic. When they detect clear invalid activity — obvious bots, double clicks, known crawler IPs — they automatically credit your account. You don't do anything. The credit appears in your billing transactions and reduces a future charge.

Google catches automatically: double-clicks within seconds, known crawlers and spiders, blatant bot signatures.

Google misses: sophisticated bots that mimic humans, VPN and proxy traffic, click farms, coordinated competitor sabotage, rotating-IP datacenter traffic.

This is the gap ClickFortify fills — and the gap where a manual claim is worth the effort.

2. Manual investigation (credit request)

For fraud Google didn't catch, you can request a manual investigation. Google's click quality team reviews your evidence and, if confirmed, applies a credit.

The credit goes to your Google Ads account balance — not your bank or card. It reduces your next invoice.

Step 1 — Check what Google already credited you

Before filing, see what you've already received.

Click the Tools & Settings icon (wrench) in the top right.

Under Billing, click Summary.

Open the Transactions tab. Look for entries labeled as refunds or credits.

Note the amount. When you file a manual claim, request only the gap — Google won't double-credit.

Step 2 — Add invalid-click columns to your campaign view

Google's own invalid-click data shows what it filtered. Adding the columns gives you a clear picture of what slipped through.

Open your Campaigns view in Google Ads.

Click the Columns dropdown → Modify columns.

Expand Performance and check: Invalid clicks, Invalid click rate, Invalid interactions.

Apply.

Compare Google's invalid count against ClickFortify's bad-clicks count — the difference is the fraud that slipped through.

A high invalid-click rate in Google and high bad clicks in ClickFortify is strong evidence of ongoing fraud — tighten protection (Settings) and file a claim for the gap.

Step 3 — Identify the fraud period in ClickFortify

Dashboard → Threat Summary chart: spikes in bad clicks show you the fraud-burst dates.
Click Traffic → filter Status = Bad to isolate confirmed fraud.
Note start and end dates.
Cross-reference with the Google Ads data from Step 2 — do the spikes align?

Submit separate claims per fraud period if needed. There's no limit on how many you can file.

Step 4 — Generate the ClickFortify evidence report

Open Reports → click Generate Click Report.

Title: be specific — Invalid Click Claim – [Campaign] – [Date Range].

Date range: the fraud period.

Generate and wait for status Done (usually a few minutes).

Download the CSV.

The CSV contains per-click: timestamp, IP, fraud classification, bot/VPN/datacenter flags, country/city, campaign, cost. Summary header shows total bad clicks and wasted spend.

Each report covers up to 10,000 clicks. For high-traffic campaigns, split into smaller date ranges and submit multiple reports.

Step 5 — Build the evidence package

Open the CSV in Excel or Google Sheets:

Filter Status = bad.
Sum Cost on filtered rows — that's your wasted-spend figure.
Sort by IP Address — repeat offenders are your strongest signal.
Note the top 5–10 fraudulent IPs.
Record the exact date range and affected campaigns.

Cross-reference against:

Source	What to note
ClickFortify report summary	Total bad clicks, wasted spend
Google Ads invalid-click column	Clicks Google already filtered
Google billing transactions	Credits already applied
The gap	What you're claiming

Step 6 — Submit the manual investigation request

Click Help → Contact us.

Topic: Billing and payments → Invalid or fraudulent click charges.

Fill the form using the template below.

Attach your CSV export. Save the case reference number.

Claim description template

I am requesting a manual invalid click investigation for:

Campaign: [CAMPAIGN NAME]
Period: [START DATE] to [END DATE]
Ad account: [ACCOUNT ID]

Our third-party click fraud protection platform (ClickFortify) detected
[TOTAL BAD CLICKS] invalid clicks during this period that do not appear to
have been filtered by Google's automatic systems, representing approximately
$[WASTED SPEND] in charged ad spend.

Evidence summary:
- [X] clicks classified as bot traffic
- [X] clicks from VPN or proxy sources
- [X] clicks from data-center IPs
- [X] unique IPs responsible for [X] repeat clicks
- Top fraudulent IPs: [IP 1], [IP 2], [IP 3]

I confirmed $[ALREADY CREDITED] has already been credited for this period.
I am requesting review of the remaining $[REMAINING AMOUNT] in unaddressed
invalid activity.

Attached: full click-level CSV export with timestamps, IPs, bot/VPN/datacenter
flags, and cost per click.

Step 7 — What to expect

Stage	Timeframe	What happens
Confirmation	1–3 business days	Google acknowledges receipt
Investigation	2–6 weeks	Click quality team reviews against Google's logs
Decision	After investigation	Credit applied, or denial sent
Credit applied	If approved	Account balance adjusted; next invoice reduced

Google rarely sends proactive updates during investigation. If you haven't heard back in two weeks, contact support with your case reference number.

What helps your chances

Submitting within 60 days.
Providing specific IPs, not general descriptions.
Showing a clear pattern: same IPs repeating, time clusters, one campaign heavily targeted.
Quantifying the dollar amount and separating it from existing credits.
Noting that Google's automatic protections didn't catch this.

What hurts your chances

Traffic older than 60 days.
Date range with no supporting data.
Claiming what Google already automatically credited.
No CSV attachment.
Vague language ("I think a competitor is clicking my ads") with no data.

Google has the final word. Even a strong claim may get partial credit or be denied if Google's data doesn't confirm what you saw. Don't budget around recovering wasted spend — budget around preventing it.

Prevention is worth more than refunds

Approach	Recovery
Automatic Google credits	Partial — obvious fraud only, no control
Manual claim	Possible credit, 2–6 weeks, no guarantee
ClickFortify active blocking	100% — invalid clicks never happen, never billed

If you're not yet blocking actively, switch Action Mode to Warn or Strict. See Launch protection for the recommended setup.

What happens next

Make this part of your Monthly review.
Get to active blocking — Launch protection.

The two refund paths

1. Automatic credits