Credit card fees.... who's charging them?

It isn't a matter of legality in the sense of state or federal law. That is required by the credit card companies merchant account agreement (or, more specifically, the Visa or MasterCard rules that are incorporated by reference into the merchant account agreement). Having said that, there have been a number of suits brought recently against the credit card companies by a number of merchants and I get the impression that those suits have caused some changes to the "rules". Don't quote me on this because I have not gone on the VISA or MasterCard web site to see what the current rules are. Attempting to read those rues is not an insubstantial undertaking since they cover hundreds of pages and are loose leaf like an insurance policy. It is not for the faint at heart.

<TED>

Exactly Ted 100% correct, but you also need to refer to your state's laws because credit card transactions can be interstate which means there is a federal jurisdiction our they can be intrastate with means it falls into state jurisdiction.

We looked at this matter a my place of employment because we have customers that pay invoices over $100K so for us accepting credit cards meant that we would take a $2000 haircut on fees and if you add in the early payment discount we offered it is worse. We were shut down by our legal department because of Florida Statute prohibiting passing on these charges.
 
Ok, so on this subject but slightly off. Anyone add tax as well? i know some will give a price and eat the taxes but how many of us add that to the bill. I suppose this may be a deal with whether your mobile or stationary?

on this subject though. after seeing the prices of cc use i opt for square myself.
 
So here's the solution.. on every bill:

Credit card fee
Disposal fee
Materials fee
Rag washing fee
Electricity fee
Water fee

While you're at it add on depreciation for all your stuff of course.


Just think! All the $ we can make off this! Really though, for those that complain about the cost of the cards affecting profits I'll say again. Like the rest of the items above it's the cost of doing business. So are you going to charge them all?
 
So here's the solution.. on every bill:

Credit card fee
Disposal fee
Materials fee
Rag washing fee
Electricity fee
Water fee

While you're at it add on depreciation for all your stuff of course.


Just think! All the $ we can make off this! Really though, for those that complain about the cost of the cards affecting profits I'll say again. Like the rest of the items above it's the cost of doing business. So are you going to charge them all?

Good points, it's funny how the cc fees seem to stand out in some people's minds as something extra that isn't a regular part of doing business. Extra fees bug me like crazy; whether it's a "disposal fee" for getting my oil changed or who knows what kind of fee for my cable and/or internet (both really bad at this practice) it really bugs me. I'd be so much happier paying my bill to those places if those fees were rolled into the price (even if the final price was the same). The extra fees just make it look like they're trying to nickel and dime you. You DON'T want to come across like this and put that bad taste in your customer's mouth.
 
Good points, it's funny how the cc fees seem to stand out in some people's minds as something extra that isn't a regular part of doing business. Extra fees bug me like crazy; whether it's a "disposal fee" for getting my oil changed or who knows what kind of fee for my cable and/or internet (both really bad at this practice) it really bugs me. I'd be so much happier paying my bill to those places if those fees were rolled into the price (even if the final price was the same). The extra fees just make it look like they're trying to nickel and dime you. You DON'T want to come across like this and put that bad taste in your customer's mouth.

Dont forget tire disposal lol. thats one that erks me and like you said if the price was the same and not a "fee" i wouldnt feel like theyre getting all they can from me.
 
Exactly Ted 100% correct, but you also need to refer to your state's laws because credit card transactions can be interstate which means there is a federal jurisdiction our they can be intrastate with means it falls into state jurisdiction.

We looked at this matter a my place of employment because we have customers that pay invoices over $100K so for us accepting credit cards meant that we would take a $2000 haircut on fees and if you add in the early payment discount we offered it is worse. We were shut down by our legal department because of Florida Statute prohibiting passing on these charges.

It is not regulated by the state in that the state makes the rules. The policies are actually different for each merchant, ie Visa, Mastercard, Discover, AMEX. Now there are states that these rules do not apply because of already set in place laws that void these rules, similar to when you here about contests on the radio and certain states are listed.

A percent is a percent. Yes it is obviously more money with a 100k ticket, but you are also making 100K. There are many ways to pass the fee along. The first is obviously build it into the price of the item. Surcharges are different from a service fee, and have different rules. If you outsource your c/c processing to another company you have many different rules, and normally able to get around the rules of the service charge fee.
 
I always eat the CC fee. or paypal fees. whatever it is. cost of doing business
 
You can't charge more for credit cards.

Don't think detailers should, I work at a market where we pay I think .25 cent and 1% a transaction. When people are buying items on credit where the mark up ends up being less than the bank fees we have to charge extra. You wouldn't believe how many people never carry cash and have no problem running a credit card for a pack of .35 big red gum.
 
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