Money Matters

Oldie reader the Rev Colin Crumpton has already paid the deposit for his holiday this year, a train trip through France. The travel firm, Rail Discoveries, charged him an extra two per cent because he used his credit card, and warned that, if he also pays the balance, due in February, by credit card, he will face the same penalty.

He particularly wants to pay by credit card because it gives added consumer protection. If anything goes wrong with purchases costing between £100 and £30,000, the credit card provider is equally responsible with the retailer for refunding you. This rule does not apply to debit card payments, although sometimes you can claim lost money through the banks’ chargeback scheme.

Colin asks if this two per cent fee is legal, fair or a scam. In fact, he is in an interesting position. When he paid the deposit, the surcharge was perfectly legal but, by the time the balance is due, it will be illegal. From 13th January, no companies are allowed to charge customers for using credit or debit cards, including Mastercard, Visa, American Express or Paypal.

I feared there was a possibility Colin might still have to pay because he bought the holiday before the deadline, even though he is paying for the bulk of it afterwards. The new rules are not clear on this point but the Chartered Trading Standards Institute reckons companies cannot charge a fee for card payments made from 13th January, even the balance of an earlier order. It emphasises, though, that this is only