Gas Stations May Not Charge You More For Credit Cards
- 2
- Add a Comment
Did you know that Gas Stations (actually any store or company) may not charge you more for using a credit card?
It is a violation of their Merchant Agreement with the credit card companies to advertise, have a sign, or state there is an additional fee for using a credit card. However, stores maybe able to get around this rule by offering a “Cash Discount” but since most gas stations and stores that are charging fees are not following this technical distinction they’re in violation of their Merchant Agreement.
If you have been charged an additional fee for using a credit card, instead of being offered a cash discount, you should call your credit card company and complain. You should even be able to dispute the additional charge levied as it’s a violation of the Merchant Agreement.
When I pull up to a gas station and see they’re charging an additional fee for credit cards I pay cash or drive to another gas station. I feel arguing with the attendants will get you no where and is a complete waste of time. Instead, I later call Mastercard and Visa and report the station.
The contents of this post are for informational purposes only and should not be construed as legal advice. I’m not a lawyer, so I do not give legal advice. If you should have any questions please consult a licensed attorney.
2 Comments
ns
July 17th, 2008
at 6:00am
very true
report all violating merchants to Visa and MasterCard
use you cell phone and call
1 800 VISA 911 and file an incident report
1 800 300 3069 for MasterCard and report a merchant violation as instructed
pull away from the gas station first before using your cell phones though..we don’t want any fires or explosions
Greg
July 27th, 2008
at 4:59am
Let me know how that works out for ya!
(HINT: it won’t)
In theory, everything you said was true (except the part about cell phones and fires). In practice, it’s not likely to make a difference.