Christy McMullen, vice-president of Summerhill Market, estimates her family-run business spends about $1 million per year on fees to process credit card transactions.
Instead, they want the federal government to live up to a promise it has made for years, starting with the 2019 election campaign, to reduce credit card transaction fees.held a consultation last year on lowering the average overall cost of such fees for merchants. In 2020, under a voluntary deal with the federal government, the credit card companies agreed to drop the cost of consumer credit card transaction processing fees to an average of 1.4 per cent .
“We’ve continued to push for further reductions particularly because we saw such a massive migration away from cash as a result of the pandemic,” said Gary Sands, senior vice-president at the Canadian Federation of Independent Grocers. In the meantime, passing on a surcharge to customers will likely be a tough sell for many businesses as Canadians grapple with the effects of soaring inflation.
When this happens I'm finding a card that doesn't charge and I'm getting rid of the others that do. Simple
Lets tell merchants that add a surcharge, we will no longer shop there!! nosurchages noswipefees
Knew nothing about this. As a consumer I am entitled to know if usage fees are to be passed onto me. It may impact how and where I shop.
For security reasons I always use my credit card. I guess I will stop shopping at stores that charge extra for using a credit card.
Greed
Everyone has forgotten Freeland’s Budget 2022, same commitment as last year, to provide relief from swipe fees 4 small/medium-size business similar to large businesses. Crickets. CC co's wailed they need the xtra fee to keep the rewards programs going, Not True. CC giants Ptui!
I can’t read the article but I wonder how much profit MasterCard & Visa have made in the past few years? Surely their business is lucrative enough not to pass on this charge to customers!
krushowy How good of them, visa and Mastercard. If stores start charging me a fee for using credit, I will just stop and use either debit or cash. Bye bye credit. I pity the poor minimum wage employee who will deal with angry customers when their employer does this.
Interesting timing. Yes a good argument for using cash, problem is a lot of people don't have cash but get by on credit until paid. We'll see if individual debt increases, spending habits change or overall sales decrease.
So Visa and Mastercard settle their lawsuit by making their cardholders pay for them. Nice. Sort of like settling a motor vehicle accident claim by making the witnesses pay.
If a store tries to charge me an extra fee for using my credit card, I will abandon my cart right then and there at the cash and walk out. And I will tell them why. Attention retailers: you've been warned!
Cash is still king.
Another argument for cash
Sounds like cash discount and no taxes on the horizon.
Another argument for using cash
Couldn’t care less if mom and pop stores lose business to big box stores. I love big box stores.
Cutting into tips, I guess.
So not only do I already have to pay a fee now I have to pay another one?
ThSts dimple… do without! Pay cash… you know like we used to… shop on Wueen St W…. They only take CASH .. some tske debit!… avoiding paying $$ to government… c don’t blame them.. you own a business … you have a 50% partner in your back pocket..
Find a b2b solution. Your customers can't always be the solution to the cost of doing business.
I guess we go back to cash?
Consumer protection fail.
Oh coarse there's going to be 'swipe fees' as more and more places push toward cashless, just like electricity costs will rise the closer we get to all electric cars.. also water is wet, the sky is blue.
Why would Justin Trudeau do this/?/?//?
Charging swipe fees should be illegal. If this goes through then this sets a bad precedent. Next retailers will be charging you to use their pen if they wanted to.
On food purchases? This is wrong. On non-essential perhaps, but on necessities NO! It will also impact their sales as people will consider higher cost of shopping, generally.
Another paywall article.
Good. I only use my credit card because it effectively offers a discount via cash back. Without that I'm happy to revert to the anonymity of cash.
One more reason why... and lets all say it loud and proud for those digital currency supporters in the back.. CASH. IS. KING.
Sorry if this sounds classist, but that swipe fee is the cost of doing business with customers who use credit cards, which has many obvious and implied benefits.
I don’t understand this. Aren’t “swipe fees” a business expenses and therefore deductible. If they are passed on, they no longer become deductible for the business and are not deductible for the customer. So really everyone loses in this scenario.
This may also mean that cards like an American Express may be more widely accepted. 🤷🏻♀️
They will loose business
They do it anyways . By offering cash discounts.
They shouldn’t be allowed. Either accept credit card payments and the cost that goes with them or don’t take them at all.
Because the card companies charge small businesses way too much. Unfair all around
When taxation becomes excessive, even punitive, like under the Liberals, people will seek ways to avoid paying taxes. Underground economies inevitably start forming. Liberals will implement measures to counter and Liberals have shown that your bank account is not really yours.
The goal of Liberals is to impoverish Canadians and make them more dependent on government. Then control is complete. This is what Canada will eventually look like if Liberals remain in control…
Central Banks solution to hike rates to curb inflation is going to continue to decimate people. Businesses are going to charge us more while CBs squeeze assets. It's pretty cruel. Wipe out inflation on assets but boost inflation elsewhere. Food, cars, insurance, rents
I hope all the businesses who try to pass the fees to customers go bankrupt. Including mom and pop stores.
Time to go back to cash!!
13% hst, 15-20% tip plus now 4% credit card use charge = eat in and shop value village.
Simple, use cash!
Simple solution shop at the store that does not charge swipe fees.
That will effectively levy another 2-3% 'tax' onto the cost of everything... this will drive inflation up higher!
And as usual, liberals do nothing for small businesses but just help their large corporate friends. They aren’t in it for the little guy.
The article is behind a paywall I’m assuming this is the liberals fault tho
If they do that then I will not shop there or simply use cash
Cash is king!