Merchant credit card processing is two contracts wearing one name: an acquiring agreement that sets your rate and your settlement, and a hardware arrangement that puts a terminal on your counter. Providers often quote them as one monthly figure, and separating them is the first step in any honest comparison.
Merchant credit card machines: separating the machine from the account
Ask for the transaction rate, the monthly account fee and the hardware cost as three lines. Published hardware here spans 11 to 179 pounds outright, or 15 to 18 pounds a month rented on the plans that publish. The account spans 0.79% to 1.75%. A single blended monthly figure hides which of the three you are actually being charged for.
What the acquiring agreement commits you to
A term, a notice period, an early termination charge and, at some acquirers, a minimum monthly service charge. The Payment Systems Regulator found these are the practical barrier to switching in UK card acquiring. Ask for the notice period and the exit charge in writing, because neither usually appears on a pricing page.
Where a merchant card machine ends up
Rented terminals go back. Bought terminals are yours and are certified to that provider's platform, so they are worthless elsewhere. Free terminals are usually rented in substance even when the word is not used. Asking what happens to the hardware if you leave will often reveal the real term of the deal.
Questions people ask about merchant credit card processing
What does merchant credit card processing cost?
Published in-person rates run from 0.79% to 1.75% plus fixed charges, with the terminal bought outright from 11 pounds or rented from 15 pounds a month on the plans that publish.
Is the card machine part of the processing contract?
Usually. Even where the hardware is bought outright it is certified to that provider, so leaving means new hardware. Ask for the machine and the account to be quoted separately.
What is an early termination charge?
A fee for leaving before the minimum term ends. It is set in the merchant agreement rather than on the pricing page, and the regulator has identified it as a principal reason UK merchants do not switch.
Where are merchant account processing fees actually set?
In the acquiring agreement rather than on the pricing page. The rate may be advertised, but the term, the notice period, the early termination charge and any minimum monthly service charge are set in the contract, and the Payment Systems Regulator found those are the practical barrier to switching in UK card acquiring. Ask for the notice period and the exit charge in writing before you sign.