Credit Card Charges

[kloofnek]

Why do we have to pay a charge for using one`s credit card yet not debit card?
I know it is supposed to be about administration and processing...so what is the difference between doing this with one card and not the other??????

[jno]

oh, I see what you mean, hc - well, they're charged by the credit company too so they're recouping it from the customer. It amounts to the same thing: the customer hangs on to his money till the end of the month but pays for the privilege, the seller pays for the privilege of getting his money straightaway from a buyer who mightn't otherwise be able to afford it, Visa are paid for the use of their money until they get it back from the buyer. A win-win situation and people are taken off the dole queues by Visa to administer it all. And if the customer doesn't want to buy credit, he can pay on the spot with a debit card.

[boxtops]

... one reason (I am told) why a lot of retailers don't offer American Express any longer, the charges to the retailer from AE are too high.

[jno]

yes, I think Amex charge more than most and there's no advantage to retailers in accepting it. My dentist doesn't take it, even for thousand-pound jobs. A shame because I get air miles on mine.

[hc4361]

All businesses have always had to pay for their banking - charged for accepting cheques etc.