Credit Card Fees

[Guest tintjackal]

I did a search and couldnt find the answer to this so I thought the members here could help.

Is it legal or not legal to charge a customer an upcharge to cover your credit card company's fees

I know some offer cash discounts and send customers to atm machines to get people not to use there credit cards but I just thought I read somewhere it was illegal to pass the processing fees on to the customer in an upcharge for just using there credit cards. Thanks

[TintWizard]

Just build it into your cost, THEN discount for cash.

[Guest tintjackal]

Just build it into your cost, THEN discount for cash.

I dont have a shop and I understand what you are saying. I just went into a place the other day and they had a sign by the cash register that stated "there will be a 2.50% upcharge for use of you credit card'. I just thought that was illegal but may be wrong

[The ///Man]

I don't think it's illegal, but I think you are contracted with the processing company not to, or at least most processing companies.

VISA states that "you may not impose any surcharges on VISA transactions. You may, however, offer a discount for cash or another form of payment (e.g., proprietary card or gift certificate) provided that the offer is clearly disclosed to customers and the cash price is presented as a discount from the standard price charged for all other forms of payment"1

MasterCard states that "A Merchant must not directly or indirectly require any Cardholder to pay a surcharge or any part of any Merchant discount or any contemporaneous finance charge in connection with a Transaction. A Merchant may provide a discount to its customers for cash payments."2

Discover states that "You may assess a surcharge on a Card Sale conducted using a Credit Card provided that (i) the amount of the surcharge may not exceed the Merchant Fee payable by you to us for the Card Sale, and (ii) you assess surcharges on card sales conducted using other credit cards accepted by you."3

American Express states that "You must not accept the Card for costs or fees over the normal price of your goods or services (plus applicable taxes) or Charges that Cardmembers have not specifically approved."4

Every originator except for Discover forbids surcharging credit card sales, however, as MasterCard so clearly states, "A Merchant may provide a discount to its customers for cash payments." This statement holds the secret to passing credit card processing fees on to customers. The trick isn't charging customers more for using a credit card; it's charging them less for using cash.

[Guest top notch auto works llc]

it may not be illegal, but its kinda unethical. i dont upcharge due to the fact that you are offering a service to customers, who without card, might not come to you anyway. do you want to eat a couple % or not get the job at all? if its a big deal, you can simply reprice your labor/products with an additional 2.5% and the whole thing will work out. i wouldnt eat if i didnt accept card. id say 90% of my customers use card as payment method. some use check as well, and last is cash. people either dont carry it around here, or simply dont have it. if i have to lose a few bucks to maintain a customer base, and still make money on a job so be it. id rather it be that way.