Merchant Credit Card Abuses: What They Cannot Ask You To Do

Many merchants engrave their own rules to your use of a credit card, usually without the right to do so. What are you required to do and what can you rightfully refuse to do? The Financial Guide explains your rights.

Personal Information

When using a credit card for a purchase, some merchants might ask you to provide a phone number, home address, or other personal information on credit card sales slips; however, consumers should always decline. This practice not only violates your privacy, but American Express, MasterCard, and Visa prohibit requiring it as a condition of sale. Furthermore, while credit card policies as well as state and federal laws vary, in California, for example, it is illegal for the merchant to record any personal information other than what is on the front of the credit card.
There is no need for merchants to obtain phone numbers or other personal information from customers. Once they have correctly processed the bank card transaction (gotten an authorization number and made sure the signatures match), they are guaranteed to receive payment.

Tip: If you don't want to provide personal information on a credit card sales slip, you can refuse to do so. The merchant has no right to refuse you the sale (although unknowledgeable clerks may have no authority to vary from store policy).

Further, if you refuse to present identification, such as a driver's license, the merchant may not refuse to make a credit card sale under Visa, MasterCard, and Amex rules.

Tip: If you exceed your credit limit, the card-issuing bank absorbs the loss, so there is no need for the merchant to contact you. Thus, there's no reason to provide your personal information.

Minimum Charge Requirements

Some stores require consumers to spend at least $20 (or some other minimum) to pay for purchases by credit card. They engage in this practice because they and their banks do not want the expense of processing a credit card transaction involving a small amount of money.
This practice defeats one of the major purposes of credit cards-convenience-and may force credit card users to spend more than they want to. In addition, minimum charge requirements vary from merchant to merchant, and there are no regulations requiring disclosure of these minimum purchase levels.
Visa's and MasterCard's regulations prohibit minimum charge amounts. American Express's regulations do not explicitly prohibit minimum charges, but its policy is to discourage any merchant practices that create a "barrier to acceptance." Amex does prohibit "discrimination" against the Amex card, however, so if a merchant has no minimum charge for Visa and MasterCard, the merchant may not discriminate against Amex by imposing a minimum charge.

How To Complain

When merchants violate the policies described here, report them to Visa, MasterCard, and American Express.

• Visa USA
  Consumer Relations
  P.O. Box 8999San Francisco, CA 94128
  +1-800-VISA-911 (customer assistance)
  
  
• MasterCard Worldwide
  Public Relations
  2000 Purchase Street
  Purchase, NY 10577
  Call collect from anywhere globally: +1-636-722-7111 or toll-free from the United States: +1-800-627-8372 (+1 800 MASTERCARD)
• American Express
  Customer Service
  PO Box 297812
  Ft. Lauderdale, FL 33329-7812
  1-800-528-4800 (US) or 1-336-393-1111 (International Collect)

In your letter, give the name and location of the merchant and a copy of a credit card sales slip. The sales slip is needed by Visa and MasterCard to track down the offending merchant. American Express provides card members with a toll-free number to call if they have difficulty with a merchant. Make sure you have the complete details about the merchant and the problem before you call.
If a merchant is uncooperative, take your business elsewhere.