$2 credit card charge on a $10 purchase?

I grabbed dinner at a bar down the street tonight, and they charged me a $2 surcharge on a $9.62 bill (a burger and a beer). I'm pretty sure the woman in the kitchen was the owner of the place, and she vaguely cited "they just changed things, you should write a letter to Columbus," but I work in the business. I'm more intimately involved in processing our credit card receipts than I'd like, and to my knowledge no new law has impacted credit card fees, and certainly not to the point of charging $2 on less than a $10 check.

If anyone wishes to correct me, I welcome it, but to my eye this place has simply rejected my business for the forseeable future, which given the volume I generally see in there, they cannot afford.

As far as i'm aware the charge normally is $1.25-1.50 to pay with your Credit Card. I don't keep track of such things so i could be wrong.

They may be using a different bank which charges a different fee. If you are concerned about it, ask the bank which they are affiliated with what the fees are for paying with your credit card as they are the ones who make the fees.

"Edit" For just an extra 50 cents i can go rough up the place...Rought it up real good...

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Ramos

As far as i'm aware the charge normally is $1.25-1.50 to pay with your Credit Card. I don't keep track of such things so i could be wrong.

They may be using a different bank which charges a different fee. If you are concerned about it, ask the bank which they are affiliated with what the fees are for paying with your credit card as they are the ones who make the fees.

"Edit" For just an extra 50 cents i can go rough up the place...Rought it up real good...

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Actually, I've learned in the course of my investigation that charging a fee for credit card purchases is a violation of MC/Visa's merchant agreement. I'm not interested in reporting the place, though I'd probably be doing them a favor getting them to scrap this policy, but if I wanted to pursue it, I could get my two bucks back.

Around here, a lot of places have a minimum purchase (also a violation) and a few will charge something like 50 cents. There are quite a few cash-only places, too. On the one hand, I'd like to support local businesses by using cash and saving them the fees, but the reality is I don't keep a lot of cash around, and I'm probably going to walk right past you and go to the place I can use my card, rather than make a trip to the ATM.

EDIT--relevant article: http://consumerist.com/333160/how-to...ng-you-show-id

I wouldn't let them take that $2, fight for it back.