Talk Morgan Forums Community The Malvern Arms Charges for Credit Cards

This is an issue that particularly enrages me when buying, say, an airline ticket online. There's realistically no other way of paying than by card and you get stiffed maybe £20 for the pleasure.

Now, in my business I take about € 500 000 per year in card payments, mostly for small amounts. My bank charges me 0,6% in commission with no minimum fee (my old bank used to charge 0.85% with a minimum fee of € 0.15. Since moving banks I no longer set a minimum for card transactions, as I'm paying a straight percentage, whereas before, if a customer wanted to pay with a card for a coffee, the card fee at € 0.15 would have represented about 8% of the sale price.

So, to get back to the likes of Bryan Air (name changed for legal reasons), the way I see it is that if a small business such as mine pays 0.6% in commission, I'd be astounded if a business of that size gets charged more than € 0.1%, so the "Credit card fee" is a straight rip off.

Another example of the useful kind of stuff that the EU gets up to in the interests of consumers....

Hi Peter

Thanks for confirming that it's not all a bank charge but a way the club are charging us for not wishing to make automatic payments and aid the cash flow into their already considerable reserves. Unbelievable although it is believable sadly. I really don't think I will be incurring the charge in the future!

Credit card fees on top of the sales price are a rip off.

What would we say if someone comes up with extra charges for receiving cash money? Maybe with the argument he has to count the money, lock it away, it could be stolen...

It's a rip off!

Most but not all businesses include the credit card merchant fees in the price. But to do this, you do need to be making a proper profit. Clubs however are generally a non-profit making exercise, although to break even, you still need to include a small profit. So I quite understand the MSCCs actions as if they didn't, those of us who pay by cheque or direct debit would be subsidising those who pay by card.

Card merchant fees are generally less for debit cards than credit cards, so if the trader is a local business and I need to use a card, I'll use the debit card. I do try to patronise local traders, as their diversity is important.

Except that MSCC is most definitely a profit making organisation!

I don't know what the proportion of international membership is but don't forget that no matter what the "incentive" direct debit is not available to people who do not have a UK bank account.

PS. We already cop the banks outrageous conversion fees without adding an "incentive".

A very good point Peter, I never considered that!

In Italy credit card charges where no other method of payment is available have been declared illegal and Bryan Air were fined €400,000 by Antitrust for the incorrect representation of the actual cost of the ticket.

Not to be outfoxed they no longer charge for the use of credit cards but offer a 2% discount for payment by debit card. I am certain that 2% is many times, probably 10 times, the difference in the charges they have to pay their bank.

I am involved with the finances of a sailing association. We do not offer payment by credit card and most of our members pay the annual subscription by DD. We receive the full value of the subscription into the accounts but the bank service charges include a monthly fee for processing the DD payments with a minimum charge of £50. We have around 500 members with an annual subscription of about £35. The charges for processing direct debit payments are equivalent to £1.41 per member per year.

Banks charge more for cash paid in (by business customers) than any other type of transaction.