Dealers charging a fee for using a credit card


I’m wondering if this is the new trend of dealers charging customers anywhere between 3 and 4% fee on the total sale if paying by credit card?   I was going to buy a brand new item online for 5K, but stopped dead in my tracks when I found I was going to have to pay a 3.9% fee for using my Mastercard!  The fee would have been almost $200.00!   Since this dealer has mostly online sales, it sounds like a big money grab to me. Between the 5K price, add $275.00 for shipping and 200 for paying by CC plus sales tax of $300.00, it would have cost me $5775.00.  I cancelled before I clicked send.  I called the dealer and was told that is the cost of doing business on the internet, so I basically told them to pound sand. 
 

Two weeks ago, I had all new brakes and rotors replaced on my 2020 Tucson with only 22K miles on it.  The bill was $1375 and I paid with my card.  When I got the statement, there was a CC fee of $37.00 added to the bill.  I went back to the Hyundai dealer and was told all businesses do this and he pointed to the sign.  I told them I saw the sign but paid with my DEBIT CARD, not a CC.  I was told it didn’t matter.  When I asked how many transactions were in cash, the service writer told me one out of fifteen pay in cash.  This makes me sick to my stomach.  
 

I would like to hear from others who have dealt with this. 

stereo5

Why is the dealer the bad guy? He’s just placing the fee back on YOU because YOU want to use a credit card. Why should he be the one to take the hit? It’s NOT his fault.

Also, sales tax is NOT added by the merchant. It is a tax collected to give back to the government. For some odd reason many people think the merchant benefits in some way.

If you don’t like the fees then you certainly have the right to NOT make the purchase.

However, the shipping fee can be manipulated for added profit but not credit card or sales tax.

Best bet is to buy stock in Visa and Mastercard and forgo using your credit card to buy expensive electronics.

The fact is that business gross margins are rapidly shrinking. The CC company zapping you for 3% makes them an unwelcome "partner" and is a defacto tax on your gross sales. 

Let's assume your net profit margin is 10% on a sale. 3% CC fee is a 33% tax on your profit margin!  Totally unfair in my opinion. 

I you don't like paying these fees use your checkbook or better yet cash. Zero 3rd party fess that way.  If it's a online purchase ask the merchant to lower the fee or accept a check via mail. 

Additionally if you have a good card like Capital 1 Sparks Visa you get 2% back on every purchase. That makes the merchant fee a net 1% which is tolerable. 

As many others have noted this is standard practice for many businesses now.  They are required to inform the consumer of these fees.  Many businesses also accept payment via check which does not incur any additional fees.  The customer centric businesses will include this info on their webpage(s) in the appropriate areas. I recently completed a purchase via personal check rather than CC when retailer informed me of the CC fees and payment options sans fees.  Sometimes as consumers it’s incumbent upon us to drill down and educate ourselves. 
Enjoy the music.