The Doctor’s Surgery
its opinion, and it needs a court case to nail the issue. I asked Rail Discoveries whether it intends charging Colin 2 per cent on the balance. It confirmed that it removed all card charges, whether for deposits or balance payments, from 18th December, which is a month ahead of the clampdown. This is good news for Colin who will save £27.
Many companies never charged customers for using credit cards, but some insurers, car dealers, local councils and government agencies did. The practice has been particularly widespread within the holiday industry which is extremely unhappy at losing this contribution to its banking costs.
Retailers pay their banks no more than 0.2 per cent to process debit cards and 0.3 per cent for credit cards. They had been allowed to pass this cost on to customers, adding a bit for their other costs, but were not allowed to overcharge. They all deny making a profit from credit card fees though some added up to 3 per cent. The fear is that they will, as Abta is suggesting to its members, put up their prices to recoup the money or impose new booking fees. The downside is that these charges will apply to everyone, not only those who pay by credit card.
Anyone who finds they have been charged for using credit and debit cards after 13th January can refuse to pay or claim the money back.
HMRC used to accept tax paid by credit card but it has withdrawn the option from 13th January, the same day as card fees being outlawed and just a fortnight before the tax year’s final payments are due.