Minimum amount accepted by shop with debit transaction

billyhead

I wanted to purchase bread using my debot card today in a local shop and was told that the value of the purchase was to low to accept a debit card transaction. Can somebody clarify if there is a minimum amount a shop can accept to pay by a debit card or does it vary from one retailer to another.

aidan_walsh

A retailer can set their own limit, but most I have seen have a reasonable limit around €10 or so.

paky

it varies from 5 euro in some shops to 10/15 euro in chinese takeaways.
this is normally the practice when the manger is a cheapskate

cookie1977

There's no minimum but most small shops refuse transactions for less then 10 euro due to the fee they have to pay basically wiping out profit on smaller transactions. There's nothing illegal in them refusing that. Although in saying that I've payed for bread in tesco on the express tills with a credit card. It mainly affects the small convenience stores/newsagents

Edit... triple snap

paky

in dublin of all places, some shops dont even accept debit or visa cards which is an absolute pain in the whole. this happend to me a few times after ordering food and waiting for it. honestly like

cookie1977

When I lived in New Zealand they had an eftpos (electronic funds transfer point of sale card) card system which allowed you to buy a lollipop from a shop with it. It also recorded the transaction instantly on your account rather than 2-3 days later as in ireland with debit/credit cards. Much better system. Suggested it to AIB when I came back and got the standard "thank you for your suggestion we will pass it on for review" response. That was 3 years ago...sigh

paky

cookie1977 wrote: »

When I lived in New Zealand they had an eftpos (electronic funds transfer point of sale card) card system which allowed you to buy a lollipop from a shop with it. It also recorded the transaction instantly on your account rather than 2-3 days later as in ireland with debit/credit cards. Much better system. Suggested it to AIB when I came back and got the standard "thank you for your suggestion we will pass it on for review" response. That was 3 years ago...sigh

lol i know. ireland is a joke when it comes to technology. its always the last to upgrade to anything.

hdowney

i understand small transactions (like a pan of bread) in a small corner store are too cost prohibitive for them so they impose a say €10 min spend, but the bigger stores/corporations surprise me. like i got told in easons once, when i was buying a 8.99 book, that their minimum spend was €10 so i should buy a drink or something to bring it up to the amount or pay with cash! easons for flipsake :eek::(:mad:

Del2005

hdowney wrote: »

i understand small transactions (like a pan of bread) in a small corner store are too cost prohibitive for them so they impose a say €10 min spend, but the bigger stores/corporations surprise me. like i got told in easons once, when i was buying a 8.99 book, that their minimum spend was €10 so i should buy a drink or something to bring it up to the amount or pay with cash! easons for flipsake :eek::(:mad:

Easons aren't that big a company and their retail branches are only a small part of the company, I doubt there's much profit from a €9 book to cover the cost of the laser fee.

cookie1977

Del2005 wrote: »

Easons aren't that big a company and their retail branches are only a small part of the company, I doubt there's much profit from a €9 book to cover the cost of the laser fee.

They employ 1800 staff and made a profit of almost 10million on turnover of 372 million in 2003 and are the main distributers nationwide of magazines and newspapers to smaller newsagents. They own Reads group and now also own the hughes and hughes stores. They probably share enough services to keep their costs down so whould be able to handle such a fee. I would very much disagree with you that they are a small cog within the family company.


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eason_%26_Son

dudara

Moved to Banking & Insurance & Pensions

dudara

ScouseMouse

Just yesterday, I declined a visa debit card from a guy wanting to top up his gas card.

For doing the transaction, I get about 20c. The bank fee on the card is about....... 20c.

Go figure.

cookie1977

superscouse wrote: »

Just yesterday, I declined a visa debit card from a guy wanting to top up his gas card.

For doing the transaction, I get about 20c. The bank fee on the card is about....... 20c.

Go figure.

Can I ask, since it was cost neutral to you would it not have been better to accomadate him in the hope that he'll appreciate it enough to give you more business?

paky

cookie1977 wrote: »

Can I ask, since it was cost neutral to you would it not have been better to accomadate him in the hope that he'll appreciate it enough to give you more business?

i would of always thought that this was the sign of a bad business man.

regress

Would ye consider going to an ATM occasionally and carrying some cash in your wallet rather than using a debit card to buy things like a loaf of bread. Ever been stuck in a queue because someone was having difficulty figuring out how to use their card to purchase a packet of crisps.

Trhiggy83

they should not be advertised for use if they dont want people to use them. i find that i pay for a lot of things with my laser now and rarely have cash on me.

paky

regress wrote: »

Would ye consider going to an ATM occasionally and carrying some cash in your wallet rather than using a debit card to buy things like a loaf of bread. Ever been stuck in a queue because someone was having difficulty figuring out how to use their card to purchase a packet of crisps.

carrying cash is a nuisance. i feel obligated to purchase stuff i dont need when i have it...strange. but when i have the visa card i buy what i need with the comfort oif knowing that my money is safe in the bank

cat_rant

I like the security of a purchase made via debit cards - as long as you protect your pin etc... I don't feel comfortable carrying much cash. I can also keep track of my expenditure more accurately.

cookie1977

regress wrote: »

Would ye consider going to an ATM occasionally and carrying some cash in your wallet rather than using a debit card to buy things like a loaf of bread. Ever been stuck in a queue because someone was having difficulty figuring out how to use their card to purchase a packet of crisps.

In my case I get cash back on my credit card so when ever I get a chance to use it (apart from lidl and aldi) i do. Even for a packet of crisps

dotsman

cookie1977 wrote: »

They employ 1800 staff and made a profit of almost 10million on turnover of 372 million in 2003 and are the main distributers nationwide of magazines and newspapers to smaller newsagents. They own Reads group and now also own the hughes and hughes stores. They probably share enough services to keep their costs down so whould be able to handle such a fee. I would very much disagree with you that they are a small cog within the family company.


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eason_%26_Son

That's a tiny Net Profit Margin, especially for 2003 (before the recession), so most likely in trouble today - just checked there and they announced redundancies back in march.

Anyway, the Eason's stores are only a small part of that company, and it has nothing to do with the number of staff. Tesco etc are a huge retailer and, thus, are in a position to negotiate smaller charges from their bank, and ultimately feel that they can offer that service at a profit.

Anyway, smart cards (contact-less payments) with lower/no retailer charges will be in Ireland soon, to deal with these issues.

ScouseMouse

cookie1977 wrote: »

Can I ask, since it was cost neutral to you would it not have been better to accomadate him in the hope that he'll appreciate it enough to give you more business?

AND then when it batchs to the bank, there is a transaction charge of another 20c.

AIB merchant services charge 20c ish for processing and then when they send it to my bank account, Ulster charge me another 20c ish as a transaction charge.

If I were to start doing things for a cost neutral basis, at a loss, then how can I make money to pay my mortgage? or pay the staff member for doing it, or pay the 15 euro charge per month for the machine to swipe the card through?

ScouseMouse

cookie1977 wrote: »

In my case I get cash back on my credit card so when ever I get a chance to use it (apart from lidl and aldi) i do. Even for a packet of crisps

What credit card has a cash back function?

Isnt that only for laser and debit cards?

cookie1977

superscouse wrote: »

What credit card has a cash back function?

Isnt that only for laser and debit cards?

In my defense on the neutral that's not what you said in your original post but fair enough. Re cash back. It's an AIB platinum card. Still available on aib site.

cookie1977

cookie1977 wrote: »

In my defense on the neutral that's not what you said in your original post but fair enough. Re cash back. It's an AIB platinum card. Still available on aib site.

Sorry just reading through the posts again. The cashback I talk about is a reward (free money) not a withdrawal like a laser card.

http://www.aib.ie/personal/credit-cards/Platinum-Credit-Card

imfml

Have the rules on this changed? I thought they had, that a retailer couldn’t refuse a card. Had my card refused today unless I was spending €5. I just needed milk & bread. The shop owner suggest a lotto ticket, but I left and told him I wanted to support local but I was off to Tesco Local up the road instead so.

SureYWouldntYa

Far as im aware, new PSD rules mean they cant charge extra for taking payment by card but there’s nothing about min spend, shops perogative

Eggs For Dinner

I had a chap wanting to pay me for a packet of chewing gum with his card. Big grin on him in front of his mates trying to act the man. Told him to F off out of the shop. Now he was trying to act the eejit, but seriously, any normal person wanting to process a card for under €5 needs to have a think

cookie1977

Back in 2007 when I lived in New Zealand we could buy anything with eftpos. Even costing less then a New Zealand dollar (at the time worth about 50 euro cent). Dont see why that cant come in here. If we're heading towards cashless it will have to happen with the cost shared out amongst all involved in the transaction.

ED E

ScouseMouse wrote: »

Just yesterday, I declined a visa debit card from a guy wanting to top up his gas card.

For doing the transaction, I get about 20c. The bank fee on the card is about....... 20c.

Go figure.

You're the kind I blacklist. Like the bookshop fella at the top of Grafton, 50c to pay contactless? F*ck right off.


I can go to Tesco/Dunnes/Aldi whoever and pay contactless for a 60c drink. £1 london bus, no problem. If you refuse the card I'll just leave the stuff for you to reshelve and jog on.

Arrival

Eggs For Dinner wrote: »

I had a chap wanting to pay me for a packet of chewing gum with his card. Big grin on him in front of his mates trying to act the man. Told him to F off out of the shop. Now he was trying to act the eejit, but seriously, any normal person wanting to process a card for under €5 needs to have a think

Ehhh, what? I use my card for transactions <€5 all the time, I try to avoid using cash as much as possible since the tap to pay is literally the quickest and easiest method of payment...even on the shops end, you can deal with customers far quicker with this since there's no arsing around with cash and change and the money and transaction are instantly accounted for and tracked making it easier for you to tally everything up

riffmongous

Eggs For Dinner wrote: »

I had a chap wanting to pay me for a packet of chewing gum with his card. Big grin on him in front of his mates trying to act the man. Told him to F off out of the shop. Now he was trying to act the eejit, but seriously, any normal person wanting to process a card for under €5 needs to have a think

All I'll think is I won't bother going back there again. I just use the card tap for pretty much everything nowadays, much faster