Restaurant adding fee for use of credit card

New York State enacted a law a few months ago which prohibits add-on fees for using a credit card (and maybe debit card, I'm not sure). Stores are allowed to have a discount for using cash (which is the case at one local diner I eat at, and use cash), or charge the same for cash and credit. My local gas station has offered significant discounts for cash for many years.
 
Customers always pay costs of a business because if customers did not, the business would not last long.
 
Unacceptable. I would generally avoid the place unless their prices were cut sufficiently to make up the difference. And I definitely wouldn't go back if they sprang it on me without it being spelled out clearly in advance (not just small print). Anyway, I haven't run across the issue, yet.
 
OldShooter said:
I'm not sure why people are so steamed up about this. Credit card fees are a cost, so the only question is "who pays?" It seems logical to me that the person who benefits from using the card should be the one who pays. Same as believing that the person who wants french fries should be the one who pays for them.

From a numbers angle, that "tiny" credit card fee could easily take 25% or more of a small shop's net profit.

Another angle: My "wine guy" is sole owner and clerk at his well-curated shop. I like him and want to see him do well, so I always write him checks instead of using a card. The fees he pays (accommodating most customers) have a significant impact on his net.
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BUT.... it really does not... it is a cost that the business takes into account and prices their items accordingly.... and I bet if he went to only cash he would be making less than he is now...

Had to look it up... 70% of spending is from CC...


BTW, I do pay cash for things that are cheap... when I go to my favorite donut shop I pay cash... they even have a sign saying no CC for less than $5....
 
Lewis Clark said:
Some of my doctors have started adding in a credit card fee. But they don't tell you until you reach the checkout desk at the end of the appointment.
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If that happened to me, I'd just say, "Send me a bill then and I'll send you a check." Make them wait for it.
 
Oh... just read about paying a dentist... I do write a check to the dentist as he gives a 5% reduction for writing a check...

SOOO, thinking about it... I would much rather see a lower bill if I paid cash instead of a surcharge for using the CC... is there a real difference..... maybe not but it seems to be one...

Also, I use a CC at the gas station and almost all now have a cash price and a credit price...
 
Teacher Terry said:
I carry cash to pay at restaurants because of the added fees. At gas stations I use my credit card because I don’t want to hassle with going in.
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Well, gas stations typically have the most well-advertised differential between CC pricing and cash/debit card pricing, so usually it's better to pay with a debit card (or cash). For example, the Citgo down the road from me here in suburban metro Atlanta has a cash/debit price of $3.29/gal and a CC price of $3.34/gal. The differential is usually between 5 and 10¢/gal. However, I still pay for gas with my Silver Business AmEx, since it gives me 3% cash back on gasoline purchases, which works out to about 10¢/gal these days (and thus completely makes up for the CC pricing surcharge).
 
I’m seeing it more. Golf clubs have started adding it to green fees when paying with cc. There is a local tire shop that adds it to the bill for new tires. Credit cards have been in use forever and most buried into their price. Why all of a sudden has this spread to all kinds of businesses? I’ve started carrying more cash as a result.
 
Credit card fees are just a way to increase revenue without raising the price. Most businesses don’t really care for cash because it requires extra handling and on occasion gets lost or comes up short.

This is one of those ideas that spreads like sparks from a fire. When one business sees another doing this, they do it too.

I wish they would just raise the price, but many businesses, especially small ones, are afraid to do so.
 
If a restaurant or other business wants to do this, they had better post a notice prominently, or I won't be able to pay them. I never carry cash anymore, since essentially every place takes electronic payment, and that is usually based on a credit card. I would be happy to use a debit card linked to my bank account if I felt it was secure, like the chip-and-PIN debit cards common in Europe, but my debit card works just like any US-issued Visa card without a PIN, which is not all that secure.
 
I'd guess it's driven by margins being tighter due to inflation, and card companies passing along more costs of cash back. TANSTAAFL
 
Texas Proud said:
BUT.... it really does not... it is a cost that the business takes into account and prices their items accordingly....
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I think maybe you have not run a business. Pricing is a complex decision and in many cases the price the owner would like to charge is impossible due to competition. In that case he is forced to eat some or all of the credit card fee or he surcharges.

But my main point is that the credit card cost is no different than the cost of a packet of french fries. If you want the convenience of using a card or you are hungry for french fries it is the same. You should pay the cost of what you want, not expect others who do not want the card or the fries to subsidize your consumption.

Further, if you think the credit card fee or the price of the fries is too high, you are free to go somewhere else.
 
GrayHare said:
I'd guess it's driven by margins being tighter due to inflation, and card companies passing along more costs of cash back. TANSTAAFL
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Yes. TANSTAAFL. It used to be that the credit card companies contractually restricted merchants from showing the card costs to their customers in any way. This little anticompetitive wrinkle was prohibited as a result of an antitrust case settlement a few years ago. That's why we are seeing more of this but as, all the angst here illustrates, a decision to surcharge card users is still a difficult one for merchants.
 
gwill1010 said:
Using debit cards on your main checking account is bad, bad idea.
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Well, at least, that's what I remember Clark Howard explaining on his TV show about 20 years ago. Since then, I only use a debit card at my bank's ATM machine.
 
GenXguy said:
Well, at least, that's what I remember Clark Howard explaining on his TV show about 20 years ago. Since then, I only use a debit card at my bank's ATM machine.
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If someone charges $10K on my credit card I just open a fraud case and go on about my business.
If someone pull $10K out of my checking account I've got a major headache on my hands. Will I get my 10K back, more than likely. How long will it take? Who knows.
 
gwill1010 said:
If someone charges $10K on my credit card I just open a fraud case and go on about my business.
If someone pull $10K out of my checking account I've got a major headache on my hands. Will I get my 10K back, more than likely. How long will it take? Who knows.
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Right. I actually had some fraudulent credit card charges years ago (in the hundreds of dollars) that I had easily removed. Never with debit, since I don't even use it except at an ATM. I did have some bogus $10 check show up on my checking account over 25 years ago that I appealed and had removed. I certainly prefer the protection of the CC.
 
ShokWaveRider said:
Maybe we will start going back to checks. Paying by check for them would be inconvenient. My dentist charges a CC fee so we pay by check.
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It's also extremely inconvenient for people to wait in line while a check is being written. In my experience, most businesses that are not grocery stores no longer accept checks. No restaurants or gas stations / convenience stores do around here. I even had a difficult time getting our County Treasurer's office to accept a check for my vehicle taxes this year. They said it's probably the last time they will do so as it is more convenient for them for us to use credit or debit cards. The state charges $7 + fees based on amount charged to use credit or debit cards. Which I don't get, because businesses here are not allowed to charge these fees, by law. But I guess it's perfectly OK for the government to charge them.
 
threeonesix said:
... The state charges $7 + fees based on amount charged to use credit or debit cards. Which I don't get, because businesses here are not allowed to charge these fees, by law. But I guess it's perfectly OK for the government to charge them.
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What state has this law?
 
What REALLY annoys me about extra credit card fees at doctors' offices is that they claim to accept cash, but don't mention that you have to bring the exact amount.

I've tried to pay with cash a couple of times after being informed (at checkout) that there's a credit card fee. I always hear some variation of the same response "Do you have the exact amount? Because we can't make change - we don't carry any cash here." It's ridiculous! They can't keep a few 20s', 10s, 5s, and singles in their drawer?? :mad:

I could just flippantly say "bill me" and leave, but they'd also likely drop me as a patient.
 
Next thing you know they’ll start charging for the heat and electricity.
 
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