Credit Card Rates
It's becoming more expensive for retailers and how that will affect consumers depends on a number of factors. Credit card rates go up next week.
We're talking about the percentage paid by retailers for the privilege of using credit services. Canadian businesses say they are paying the highest credit card charges in the world and they're asking the government to step in.
When you use a credit card to make a purchase - the retailer has to pay Mastercard or Visa an interchange fee. On average it's about two per cent -so two per cent of your purchase goes directly to the credit card company.
"It's like printing money it really is. It's really quite outrageous," explained Diane Brisebois from the Retail Council of Canada.
The Retail Council of Canada says these rates have risen four times this year and are set to go up again on October 1st.
While different retailers pay different amounts - on average the interchange fee could increase to three per cent or even higher. Look what this means to retailers.
If someone makes a $200 purchase the retailer pays Interac 6.5 cents for the debit transaction.
But for the same purchase made with a credit card at two per cent, the retailer pays the major credit card company four dollars. On a $2,000 purchase, the retailer still pays Interac 6.5 cents, but has to pay the credit card company $40.
One credit card company thinks the Retail Council is trying to make this an election issue. There's a lot of money at stake for both sides so you can expect this issue to get a lot of attention.
Whether consumers will have to pay higher prices depends on a lot of factors. It's just another cost retailers have to deal with.
So if a retailer thinks it can pass the costs along to you it will. The more competition there is among retailers, the harder it is to pass along higher prices.
So or a retailer may be forced to eat it and the try to cut costs in other ways, like laying off staff.
In that situation, you don't pay more but you get less customer service and someone is out of a job.
Maybe they will increase delivery charges, or end free delivery. Maybe they will change their return policy to cut back on that expense. So there are a number of ways it can play out. But ultimately somebody pays.
Bell Mobility
Got a dispute with your cell phone provider? Help is available.
You just need to know who to contact.
"The problems were starting to become worse and worse, we were getting more and more dropped calls," explained Cheryl Abbot. She was just four months away from the end of her cell phone contract with Bell Mobility and she'd had enough.
"We have two phones on the plan and they said we would have to pay $200 per phone to cancel the plan," she said.
Cheryl felt -- in light of poor reception -- the charges were unreasonable.
"I would be standing in my kitchen and I couldn't receive a call. I would be sitting at my desk at work and I couldn't receive a call," she described.
In frustration she e-mailed CTV news. We referred her to the Commissioner for Complaints for Telecommunications Services, afairly new agency you may never have heard of.
"I essentially copied and pasted my e-mail that I sent to you in my complaint to them so it was exactly the same information. And they responded to me that they felt it was a valid complaint," she explained.
Howard Maker, the Commissioner for Complaints for Telecommunications Services in Ottawa says they dealt with 6,000 complaints last year.
'Resolving customer complaints is really job one, that's what we are here to do." he said.
The Commissioner's website lists the wide range of services covered by its mandate.
From wireless, internet and VOIP services to billing or failure of companies to live up to their contracts. Maker says if the complaint is accepted, they contact the phone company and most of the time it's resolved quickly.
"Up to two-thirds of the things that we send over never come back to us for a formal investigation so we think we are having great success," he explained.
In a matter of days, Cheryl got an e-mail from her phone company, saying it would reduce the cancellation fee from $200 per phone to $50. She feels that is reasonable.
"And the best part for me was I didn't have to be mad and yell at anybody to get any results," said Cheryl.
She splurged on an i-Phone with her new provider.
There are many agencies that can help you with consumer problems -- but they aren't always well publicized. You can email me at olsen@ctv.ca and I'll send you a list.
With a report by CTV British Columbia's Chris Olsen
