Find the best credit card offers online.The credit card industry has been getting a lot of heat lately. Overwhelming discontent over credit card practices led to the drafting and signing of the new Credit CARD (Card Accountability, Responsibility and Disclosure) Act early this year. Now, it is the small businesses who are clamoring for positive action against credit card industry practices, namely transaction fees.
Every time a credit card holder makes a transaction, the seller or merchant who accepts the credit card for payment has to take care of the transaction fee. A transaction fee is a fee credit card companies levy on businesses that accept credit cards as modes of payment. Merchants find these transaction fees to be too expensive and a very big burden for their businesses. During the drafting of the Credit CARD Act, they had hoped that protection for small businesses would be included in the act. Unfortunately, it was not. Thus, they are now taking action themselves and, leading the charge is 7-Eleven Inc. and their nationwide network franchisers.
Recently, 7-Eleven ran a nationwide signature campaign against transaction fees. Ultimately, they were able to gather up more than 1.6 million signatures from their customer base demanding lower transaction fees from credit card companies. The drive was an effort to gather up popular support for a federal legislation which aims to limit the ability of banks and credit card companies to set and enforce the charging of interchange fees.
Sandip Mali, a 7-Eleven franchisee from Denver said, “My customers were really supportive and eager to sign. I hope the credit card companies get the message”.
According to executives from 7-Eleven, the burden of transaction fees ultimately fall on the consumers, though they may not know it. The transaction fees are assessed every time a consumer uses his or her credit card. This forces the company to raise prices to compensate. It is not only those who use credit cards that get hit either. Even those who use cash pay higher for their purchases because of transaction fees.
7-Eleven chief executive and president Joe DePinto said, “Customers share our frustration over the hidden fees that American retailers and, ultimately, consumers are forced to pay. They, too, want Congress to take action to regulate these unfair fees, which are the highest in the industrialized world”.
Credit card companies aren’t standing still, however. MasterCard, in particular has fought back against 7-Eleven. U.S. Chris McWilton, MasterCard Worldwide’s president for its U.S. markets said, “Consumers appreciate that the ability to use a payment card is a win-win for them and for merchants they visit. It’s undeniable that electronic payments drive value for all merchants. It’s surprising that 7-Eleven, a company that prides itself on convenience, would mount such an aggressive campaign against the most convenient form of payment”.
