What to do about a business that takes AMEX, but employees can't accept it?
Oct 22, 2019, 8:40 am
#31
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Oct 22, 2019, 8:58 am
#32
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Where I am from in Newfoundland and Labrador, we see that often at gas stations in rural locations.
One place out by my cabin has a sign that shows the gas price per litre if you pay with credit, and the cheaper price if you pay with cash/debit. Now I have noticed it missing as of late so I assume somebody reported this to the credit card companies.
One place out by my cabin has a sign that shows the gas price per litre if you pay with credit, and the cheaper price if you pay with cash/debit. Now I have noticed it missing as of late so I assume somebody reported this to the credit card companies.
Oct 22, 2019, 9:40 am
#33
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Where I am from in Newfoundland and Labrador, we see that often at gas stations in rural locations.
One place out by my cabin has a sign that shows the gas price per litre if you pay with credit, and the cheaper price if you pay with cash/debit. Now I have noticed it missing as of late so I assume somebody reported this to the credit card companies.
One place out by my cabin has a sign that shows the gas price per litre if you pay with credit, and the cheaper price if you pay with cash/debit. Now I have noticed it missing as of late so I assume somebody reported this to the credit card companies.
Lots of gas stations offer a discount by cash and their digital signs always reflect it.
What upsets me, however, is pulling into a gas station seeing a lower price and their "cash only" price that is visible doesn't have a similarly visible "cash only" illumination.
Oct 22, 2019, 11:54 am
#34
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I was just at a conference and they were discussing the issue of adding CC charges separately. The people there said it's currently a state by state issue in the US but thought some point it would be solved and be consistent nationwide.
Oct 22, 2019, 6:00 pm
#35
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While I sympathize with businesses having to absorb these costs, it is simply a part of the costs of doing business in the first place.
Oct 22, 2019, 7:34 pm
#36
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My friends from Asia always call the price in North America a lie. In Asia you pay what is written, in the West you pay the price, tax, tips and now credit card fees...
Oct 22, 2019, 11:56 pm
#37
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1. Armored car fees. If you're a small(er) company, this can be expensive.
2. Risk of theft (both robbery and employee theft), mistakes, etc.
3. Employee wages for the time spent counting cash.
Sure, all of these are unavoidable costs, but this just means that handling cash is not "free" and depending on sales volume, can actually cost more than whatever the most expensive interchange fee is on credit cards.
The only time where cash is advantageous is if the business is small (like a sole proprietorship) where the owner is doing all of this and doesn't value their time on an hourly basis.
Oct 22, 2019, 11:58 pm
#38
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I've done this by accident - Store had a "we don't accept AMEX" sticker on the machine but I absent-mindedly used my AMEX and realize only as it was processing. Payment went through and I was none the wiser.
Oct 23, 2019, 6:41 am
#39
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I know the merchant fees are considerably higher for AMEX over say Visa/MC.
With this in mind, why would they even accept it if they aren't willing to say that they accept it (or allow people to use it)?
If you won't allow your employees to let people use it, perhaps you just shouldn't be accepting it at all.
With this in mind, why would they even accept it if they aren't willing to say that they accept it (or allow people to use it)?
If you won't allow your employees to let people use it, perhaps you just shouldn't be accepting it at all.
Oct 23, 2019, 7:25 am
#40
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I agree - I refuse to nickel and dime my customers and just build it into my pricing. When people pay by check or cash it's just a bonus for me.
Oct 23, 2019, 8:53 am
#41
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Well if the cost of cards are too high, I think businesses should increase prices if it's unsustainable. But keep the same price for everyone. I am already unhappy that you pay a different sales tax across the various states, if on top of that, the way you pay is going to influence the final price, than it's chaos.
Ideally, the whole country should move to a single sales tax and all prices on the ticket should be what you have to pay, tax included. But this day will never come, I suppose.
Ideally, the whole country should move to a single sales tax and all prices on the ticket should be what you have to pay, tax included. But this day will never come, I suppose.
Oct 23, 2019, 9:06 am
#42
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If the establishment advertises that they accept AmEx, I insist on paying this way.
Reporting the situation to AmEx can sometimes be effective, or at least you can feel good about having reported the manager's attempts to cheat on the contract they signed with AmEx. IME AmEx is always very grateful that you reported the incident.
Reporting the situation to AmEx can sometimes be effective, or at least you can feel good about having reported the manager's attempts to cheat on the contract they signed with AmEx. IME AmEx is always very grateful that you reported the incident.
I had a thoughtful reply from Amex when I reported a store who refused to take Amex because the item I bought was on sale. A $300 charge.
Oct 23, 2019, 7:14 pm
#43
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My funniest example of this was a restaurant telling me they didn't take AMEX, as I tried to pay a check they had handed to me in a check presenter/holder with the AMEX logo on it. "Oh, well we used to take it." "Maybe you should stop using these then?"
Oct 24, 2019, 5:59 am
#44
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My biggest vendor started doing it, and it's something we ($5M business) are considering.
While I have millions of points from our business spend.... I also have a six figure merchant fee expense on the books for accepting credit cards.
I'd rather have $125k in my pocket each year than 5 million miles...
We are considering it - and really, I think more and more places will in the next few years. 1.85%-3.1% on the bottom line can be the difference between a solid year, and a bad year, for most small businesses.
Oct 24, 2019, 10:11 am
#45
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