Sunday, February 3, 2013
New law went onto effect Jan. 27 and could raise your bill by 4 percent.
Stores can now pass along their credit card transaction fees -- typically between 1.5 and 4 percent -- to consumers, thanks to a settlement in a class-action lawsuit brought by retailers, including Safeway. The suit alleged that banks and credit card companies worked together to keep the transaction fees high, according to a recent story in the Philadelphia Inquirer. While it is not mandatory for stores to charge the fees, a spokesperson for Consumer Action told Bloomberg that "smaller, independent stores may be more willing to levy the fees because they pay higher charges to banks for credit card transactions and don’t have the bargaining power to negotiate lower ones." Ten states already have banned the fees, but as of the time of this …
Saturday, January 26, 2013
A fee of up to 4 percent of a credit card purchase could be added to your bill come Sunday.
Think twice when you pull out your credit card to pay for brunch this weekend. A controversial federal court ruling last year has given retailers the go-ahead to tack bank surcharges for credit card purchases on customer bills—starting Sunday. Bank fees between 2 and 4 percent of a credit card purchase had traditionally been covered by retailers making the sales, but smaller businesses without the backing of major corporations usually felt the brunt of these charges. Ten states prohibit passing fees on to credit card users, but Maryland is not one of them, according to an announcement issued by the Bethesda-Chevy Chase Regional Services Center. Customers can avoid the charges by paying with debit cards or prepaid cards. According to a …
Friday, January 25, 2013
A fee of up to 4 percent of a credit card purchase could be added to your bill come Sunday.
Think twice when you pull out your credit card to pay for brunch this weekend. A controversial federal court ruling last year has given retailers the go-ahead to tack bank surcharges for credit card purchases on customer bills—starting Sunday. Bank fees between 2 and 4 percent of a credit card purchase had traditionally been covered by retailers making the sales, but smaller businesses without the backing of major corporations usually felt the brunt of these charges. Ten states prohibit passing fees on to credit card users, but Maryland isn't one of them, according to an announcement issued by the Bethesda-Chevy Chase Regional Services Center. Customers can avoid the charges by paying with debit cards or prepaid cards. According to a Time…
Bob
6:12 pm on Sunday, January 27, 2013
So you can be charged up to 4% for using a credit card, which is on top of any interest you may accrue on the charge. Your alternatives are a debit card, which has a fee, or a pre-paid card, which already has a fee (I've seen more than 6% on a $100 card). Use a check, which has its own fees. There are no other-than-cash alternatives, although probably there are some retailers who will also charge… more ›