Surcharges - the secret rip-off
Why are credit and debit card surcharges still being charged in Australia? I find it anoying after having seen the price and then paid, to then find I was actually charged a slightly higher cost on my receipt!
If you havn't noticed this yet, ask for your receipt next time you grab your coffee and look at the extra 6c on the cost to you.
Surcharges were banned in the UK back in 2018 for both debit and credit cards. The price you see is the actual price you pay, simple, fair, what you would expect.
Thankfully things are starting to change for Australian consumer's. In 2016 we had the "Excessive Surcharge" ban to stop businesses making a profit from surcharges and now the government is taking the next step in proposing to scrap surcharge fees on debit and credit cards altogether.
Help get rid of these hidden, inconsistent, rip-off charges, sign the Choice petition.
As they say:
We should be able to trust that the price advertised is the price we’ll pay at the checkout.
How to avoid surcharges?
Well there is a way, and it's likely right under your nose. In Australia it's called the New Payments Platform (NPP). You probably know as services like PayID or PayTo. This cunningly bypasses the traditional card networks and their associated fees and lets you transfer direct to another account.
Now, if only more businesses would start offering this method of payment in Australia as they do already in countries such as Brazil, India, Singapore and Southeast Asia usually in the form of QR code payments using your mobile.
