Leeds Arena: 5% card fee for non HSBC customers

TigerTanaka

Apologies if this in the wrong forum.

Last night I went to see Robbie Williams at the First Direct Arena in Leeds. My fiancee bought a souvenir T-shirt for £30 and was told that she had to pay a 5% card fee unless she was paying on an HSBC or First Direct credit/debit card. She wanted the t shirt and purchased on American Express and paid the fee.

First of all I believe 5% is excessive given the 2-3% range charged by other companies (and I know what rates retailers in the UK actually pay).

However, does anyone know if it is against the merchants Ts&Cs to charge a credit card fee to some customers and not to others? I do know that under the Amex Ts&Cs, companies cannot charge a higher rate for Amex as they might for Visa or Mastercard but does this extend to card issuers?

giblet10

Well, I can tell you speaking as a First Direct customer that I'm pleased to see at long last what benefits I can expect. Although it doesn't exactly bowl me over!

premierfella

I'd be surprised if it was given that airlines charged different fees based on whether a credit card was prepay or not.

The reality of that 5% fee is
1. the seller is clearly happy to rip off captive customers and
2. its HSBC Group customers getting a discount rather than other card users getting an extra charge. No doubt HSBC provides the merchant card services for them.

Monkeyballs

Hi,

I don't know the answer but how weird that they would charge a fee on top instead of giving customers who produce a HSBC or First Direct card a 5% reduction? Surely that's a better way to promote their products instead of annoying everyone else by penalising them?

LOL sounds like a bit of a home goal there...

MB

eskbanker

TigerTanaka wrote: »

First of all I believe 5% is excessive given the 2-3% range charged by other companies (and I know what rates retailers in the UK actually pay).

How do you know what merchant rates a pop-up merch stall pays?

TigerTanaka wrote: »

However, does anyone know if it is against the merchants Ts&Cs to charge a credit card fee to some customers and not to others? I do know that under the Amex Ts&Cs, companies cannot charge a higher rate for Amex as they might for Visa or Mastercard but does this extend to card issuers?

This thread seemed to conclude that Amex had no such right to insist on that when they impose their own level of fees on the merchants: https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/4959593

If HSBC charges this merchant less to process HSBC cards then surely the principle should be that such reductions are passed to customers?