Shop not accepting Laser/Visa for items under €10

M

milan

Registered User
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32
Hi All,

I was working down in the Greenogue area of Newcastle, Dublin over the last few weeks and was getting lunch in the Spar shop there.
My problem is that they wont accept laser or credit cards unless you spend more that €10 euro in the shop.
I rarely carry cash when i'm working because I find laser or credit card useful for keeping track of my expenses which I claim back from my employer.
I queued up and ordered my sandwich from the deli counter etc and then went up to the till. My total lunch cost about €6.50 or so, I was then informed that I had to spend €10 euro or more or use the ATM as cards are not accepted otherwise. I have never got this in any other shop before when offering laser/Visa. I asked to speak to the manager who was behind the counter and he pointed to a small sign behind the till stating this rule. Silly place to put it as by the time youve got to the till its too late.


Anyway I left my lunch on the counter and walked in protest.
Has anyone any expiereance of this or know if it is even legal?
Apart from anything else its very short sighted business practice !
 
It is totally legal.

I was caught the same way in Westport a few years ago-sign on door said Laser/Credit Cards accepted, when we went to pay we were told of the minimum charge. I was less than impressed, and really felt like telling them to take it or leave it, but as we were on holidays I just went and withdrew cash and paid.

Fair play for protesting, but at the end of the day it is the owners perogative to set such rules. On the other side, maybe the costs of processing such transactions mitigate against the benefits.
 
There is no law that says retailers must take Laser. I presume that they can unilaterally set their own minimum transaction limits too if they choose? Why not contact Laser or your bank and ask them.

Post crossed with CCOVICH's.
 
I've a funny feeling that it's the charges by the bank that force shops to do this. A business friend of mine says he gets massive charges for facilitating LASer cards but then again, he's always moaning!....
 
on the laser site it says merchants generally pay from 20c to 28c per transaction.[broken link removed]. That would eat up a large part of the margin on a transaction below €10.
 
I have checked with a friend of mine who runs a Londis shop locally, He couldnt believe it. There is a small charge for taking laser/visa but he had never heard of shops setting limits on what you had to spend.
He would rather get the sale then lose it. I have complained to 2 irish consumer groups that I found on google but got no response as of yet, I wouldnt mind but I was working down there for a few weeks on and off and probably spent €40 - €60 euro in total and they did accept laser there before for lunch. I think the girl at the till had to insist on the rule because her boss was there.
I was fuming....and starving !!
 
I have come across it in many places-and I don't mind it all as long as it is clearly disclosed. Don't forget that Ryanair charge for booking with a card and both Aldi and Lidl don't accept credit cards at all.

I'm sure the girl on the till would have insisted anyway as it would have shown up on the records at a later stage had she accepted the transaction.

And it could have been worse-after all there was an ATM in store, right?
 
Welfarite said:
I've a funny feeling that it's the charges by the bank that force shops to do this.
Click to expand...
On the continent, you'll often see retail outlets — even big supermarkets — that won't accept credit cards for transactions <€10, presumably for the same reason.
 
There was an ATM there but on that day I was using my credit card and wasn't willing to use it in an ATM to get cash.
I wouldn't mind either once it was clearly stated in the shop, but to have to queue up and then be told at the till, really annoyed me.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Just emailed Laser customer services to check about this minimum spend policy.
 
I was in a shop on Grafton Street last week and the two shop assistants were talking about a lady who wanted to pay for a 80cent chocolate bar with Laser. To quote 'I told her to take a hike'!! Charm school needed or what?
 
liteweight said:
I was in a shop on Grafton Street last week and the two shop assistants were talking about a lady who wanted to pay for a 80cent chocolate bar with Laser. To quote 'I told her to take a hike'!! Charm school needed or what?
Click to expand...

Do you reckon they actually told her to take a hike? I would be surprised if they did.
 
The charge for a laser is quite small ... but the cc card is very heft, i wouldn't blame any shop for having a minimun transaction on it...
 
jhegarty said:
The charge for a laser is quite small ... but the cc card is very heft, i wouldn't blame any shop for having a minimun transaction on it...
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I think the point is that laser transactions incur a fixed cost for the retailer. They're well within their rights to impose a limit...otherwise they could end up losing money on smaller transactions.
 
The company I work for limit the amount we can spend by credit card on a single purchase to €600, over that we need to arrange a purchase order which can take up to 30 days to pay by company cheque. Last year I booked a hotel for a mini-conference, total bill came to €900, I offered the hotel the choice of 2 invoices and we pay by CC or alternatively using the purchase order. Their choice was payment by cheque as they would lose too much on the CC transaction.

So I can see where the convenience stores are coming from - also it can be very annoying when waiting in the queue for the till and see someone paying by CC for such a small amount.
 
Pee said:
So I can see where the convenience stores are coming from - also it can be very annoying when waiting in the queue for the till and see someone paying by CC for such a small amount.
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Yes, I agree with that.
 
Pee said:
- also it can be very annoying when waiting in the queue for the till and see someone paying by CC for such a small amount.
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Why is this annoying they were there before you they can pay however they like. How do you know what method of payment they use, you must be one of those ignorant people that stand directly behind the paying costumer looking over their shoulder. Next time stand back and wait your turn.
 
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