Letters

On the one hand, I’m hesitant to point this out because almost everyone I see is in violation. On the other hand, if the state decides to do anything about it, it would probably be deemed as selective enforcement since so many people are in violation.

There are three legal ways, according to a state publication guideline, to charge a customer for credit card surcharges. One is to clearly display your cash and credit card charge. For example, a restaurant would have to have two prices for every item: cash and credit. The second way is to list only the higher cost, including a credit card cost. Then you can advertise a discount for cash purchases.

The third method is to charge the same price for both cash and credit card purchases. This means the business absorbs the cost of the credit card charges.

You cannot simply put a notice on the wall or at the register that says that a fee is applied to credit card sales. That is illegal.

It is also illegal to charge a separate line item for credit card charges, calling it a convenience fee, service fee, etc. You also cannot advertise that prices include a cash discount that does not apply to credit card purchases.

Finally, you cannot include a credit card surcharge warning on an item price tag. It is also, by the way, illegal for a business to charge any more than the processing fee charged by the credit card processor.

Reading this over, I am sure almost everyone recognizes that very few businesses are complying. I am in complete agreement that this is way too cumbersome. Imagine going into a store or a restaurant and having two prices for everything that is there. And think of the business, trying to comply.

It also gives a huge advantage to mega-stores, whose cost for credit card processing is much lower than small businesses. It’s a lot easier for those businesses to absorb the cost. That would probably be less than half that of the small-business owner.

This whole thing seems completely unfair, especially to small businesses.

Chris Dalmasse

Southampton