Credit Card Surcharging

[KetchRescue]

I assure you that what you're doing is in direct violation of your merchant agreement . Visa, MasterCard, Discover, American Express (especially AmEx, expensive ) and most of the off branded cards specifically state that you may not impose a surcharge for one card type and not another (or a different fee for another). Most merchant agreements prohibit the practice altogether.

I'm not gonna turn you in, but watch your 6 - if your processor catches you doing this, not only can they terminate your agreement instantaneously, but they may also be entitled to punitive damages. Plus, if you are terminated, it's oftentimes very difficult to get an account with another processor. I deal with this stuff every day, I've seen it happen to others, and I've had to hold their hands as we both jump through major (flaming) hoops to get them processing again.

Also worth noting: not only does your merchant agreement come in to play, but also the individual agreements you agreed to (and may not have copies of) by signing your merchant agreement (Visa, MasterCard, Discover and AmEx all have their own, separate sets of rules & regs).

I don't know what your rates are, but you are most likely being charged the same for debit and credit transactions. Both are usually considered 'non-qualified' when a card is not physically present (you did not capture the magstripe data at time of purchase). PM me if you need some help figuring out what's up.

[stevesh]

Ordinarily, since you deal with this stuff every day, I would defer to your experience, but:

http://knowyourcard.org/articles/checkout_fees

(In a previous post, I said it resulted from a change in law. It appears it's part of a lawsuit settlement instead. My bad there.

[RixStix]

It is safe to say that only the individual merchant can know what is specified in the terms of their account because every account/processor is different. It seems very unlikely that any reputable processor will insert language into their contract which contradicts MC/VS/Amex/Discover terms.

Mine, for instance, says that I can (if I choose) specify a preferred cardtype. Mine does process debit according to the Durbin amendment instead of as credit. Mine does have over 36 different rates which are card dependent upon interchange and specific cardtype.

That alone is what prevents me from processing via PP Pro because they are not required to follow the same rules and process CC/DB @ the same rate and not dependent upon interchange. Other than that, since PPP will waive all fixed monthly fees, they are getting very close to a similar, averaged rate as our current processor.

Discover is usually within a few pennies of Amex rates, so don't just dig Amex for being costly. I love accepting the Amex cards.