It boils down to the stipulations in your merchant services agreement. If it does not include curbside pick up, BOPIS, or delivery, then you are in breech of contract. This means that there is just cause to terminate the contract and you will lose the ability to accept payment by credit or debit card (with little to no warning).
Some common questions and advice:
- Seriously? Would the merchant services companies really do this? Yes - this information came directly from merchant services companies.
- How much notice would I get that my account is being terminated? In my experience, normally one business day but it could be more or less depending on which company handles your merchant services/credit card processing
- How would they even know that my retail store is offering delivery, BOPIS, or curbside pickup? If you have a local salesperson, they may notice what you offering (but may or may not say anything). The biggest danger is if you receive a charge back / dispute - then they will know for sure if the consumer states that the transaction was done curbside, BOPIS, or via delivery and not in store card present.
My Advice:
- Review your merchant services agreement / contract to see if delivery, BOPIS and curbside pick up are allowable.
- If you are not sure, then contact the company or your salesperson directly.
- Use Square for processing sales that are not traditional in store card present transactions. Square appears to be more flexible when it comes to non-traditional sales transactions (but double check the agreement / contract to play it safe).
One other thought:
Your risk also appears to be related to what types of products you sell. For example, a retailer selling age restricted products (eg: tobacco or alcohol) appears to be in more danger than a retailer selling yarn
I'd appreciate any comments, questions or feedback on this topic! You can reach me at kevinantosh@gmail.com or 208-340-5632
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