Blog #4 Credit and debit card surcharges 'are excessive'

This article focuses on the rising cost of simply using a credit or debit card in Europe and the various "hidden" charges that can come along with it.  Retailers are allowed to set whatever fee the wish for using the card instead of cash, added onto the cost of the item itself.  This essentially means that an item's price is not simply the retail price but an extra hidden fee that can be processed for a credit or debit card.  Items or services are typically marked up in price based on a fixed amount it costs to make, and varying amount based on demand, and another relatively fixed amount it takes to actually process the money being brought it.  When the consumer uses a credit or debit card however the companies have the ability to simply charge them an extra fee for using the card, that is not shown on the total but still very much a real charge.  The Office of Fair Trading (OFT) has recently been alerted and is has issued a request from the retailers within 90 days at which time  they will decide if they need a formal investigation.  What the OFT is asking for is three things that seem like they would be common and ethical: "Retailers to tell customers upfront and in plain language about surcharges", "The charges levied on customers to be the same as the cost to the retailer", and retailers to absorb the "small" cost of processing debit card payments. To most people these things seem like they would be common place in a global market, but that is not the case, although hopefully it will become so in the near future.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-12423004