Competition Tribunal Decision a Win for Consumers

TORONTO, ONTARIO--(Marketwired - July 23, 2013) - The Canadian Bankers Association (CBA) welcomed today's decision by the Competition Tribunal dismissing the Application filed by the Commissioner of Competition and upholding the consumer-friendly rules of Visa and MasterCard.

"We are very pleased that the Competition Tribunal has upheld the consumer-friendly rules of Visa and MasterCard. This decision means that Canadians can continue to choose how to use their credit cards and to enjoy the benefits of credit card use that they have come to value," said Terry Campbell, president of the Canadian Bankers Association. "This decision is very good news for consumers."

Overturning the no-surcharging rule would have allowed retailers to add an extra charge, a retailer checkout fee, to a purchase made with a credit card. Retailers are already allowed to offer a discount for other forms of payment, but very few do. The Consumers' Association of Canada is strongly opposed to retailer checkout fees, as are 84 per cent of Canadians, according to its research.

As the Tribunal noted, the experience in other jurisdictions showed that concerns would be raised by consumers if changes were made to allow surcharging.

Australia provides a very good example of what can happen when surcharging on credit card purchases is allowed. In 2003, Australian regulators allowed surcharging in the hopes that retailers would pass on the cost savings to consumers. But that hasn't happened. In fact, some retailers imposed surcharges much higher than the cost of their credit card acceptance - sometimes double according to consumer groups in that country.

"One thing that has been missing in the whole debate about the cost of credit card acceptance is the many benefits that accepting this form of payment gives to retailers," said Mr. Campbell.

• Credit cards provide retailers with fast, guaranteed payment that can reduce lines at the check-out. If every payment transaction took an extra 30 seconds, that would add another 27 million hours of staff time each year.
  
  
• Credit card payments allow merchants to offer customers credit without taking on credit risk. New payment options, such as contactless cards, also benefit merchants and make it easier and faster for customers to make purchases.
  

"What is often overlooked is that paying with cash is one of the most expensive forms of payment for retailers, if you include time and effort spent handling, counting, reconciling and depositing cash every day, not to mention higher security costs and safety concerns for a store's employees," added Mr. Campbell.

About the Canadian Bankers Association

The Canadian Bankers Association works on behalf of 55 domestic banks, foreign bank subsidiaries and foreign bank branches operating in Canada and their 275,000 employees. The CBA advocates for effective public policies that contribute to a sound, successful banking system that benefits Canadians and Canada's economy. The Association also promotes financial literacy to help Canadians make informed financial decisions and works with banks and law enforcement to help protect customers against financial crime and promote fraud awareness. www.cba.ca

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