Companies have long levied surcharges to customers who pay for goods using a credit card. Now, the consumer watchdog Which? is launching a so-called ‘super complaint’ in order that the Office of Fair Trading conducts an investigation into credit card charges.
The investigation may lead to a full scale review over what Which? claims are ‘hundreds of millions’ of pounds worth of card surcharges.
Companies profiting on credit card fees
The Daily Telegraph reports that low cost airlines have been singled out as major culprits of companies who levy high credit card surcharges. The newspaper reports that ‘the cost to the airline would be around 20 pence to process a debit card payment and no more than 2 per cent of the transaction value for a credit card…. While Ryanair charges a family of four £40, the same family would be charged £38 by Flybe and £5.50 by easyJet.’
Local authorities, cinemas, hotels, estate agents, and even the DVLA have also been identified as industries where large fees are often payable if you choose to pay by credit card.
‘No justification for excessive card charges’
Which? is calling for all card charges to be proportionate and for them to be made completely clear at the start of the transaction process.
Peter Vicary-Smith, the chief executive of Which?, said: “There’s simply no justification for excessive card charges – paying by card should cost the consumer the same amount that it costs the retailer. Companies shouldn’t be using card processing costs as an excuse for boosting their profits.”
Prashant Vaze, head of fair markets at Consumer Focus, agrees: “Consumers are fed up with paying these surcharges. Often they have no other option, especially for internet transactions where there is no alternative to using cards. The worst offenders even ask for surcharges on a per person basis.
“Any debit or credit card charge should only be cost reflective. For far too long firms have made a quick buck through confusing and unfair card charges, which bear no relationship to the costs levied by payment agencies.”
