• Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
lawyers@rslaw.com.au (02) 9299 4912

Commercial Lawyers & Solicitors | North Shore | Sydney CBD

  • Home
  • Our Story
    • Our Community
    • Our Environment
  • Our Services
    • Business & Commercial
      • Starting A New Business
        • New Business Structures
      • Buying & Selling a Business
        • Corporate Mergers and Acquisitions (M&A)
        • Sale or Purchase of Shares in a Private Company
        • FAQ – Sale of Business
        • FAQ – Purchase of Business
      • Business & Commercial Disputes
      • Corporate Governance & Asset Protection
      • Intellectual Property & IP Law
      • Contract Law
      • Climate Change, Energy Law & Carbon Trading
    • Debt Recovery
      • Debt Recovery Process
      • Enforcing a Debt or Judgment
      • Car Accidents & Motor Vehicle Claims
    • Probate, Estate Administration & Disputes
      • Applying for a Grant of Probate
      • FAQ’s – Contesting or Disputing a Will
      • FAQ’s – Executors and the Administration of Deceased Estates
    • Civil Disputes & Litigation
      • Business & Commercial Disputes
        • Shareholder Disputes
        • Partnership Disputes
        • Director’s Disputes
        • Contract & Property Disputes
      • Litigation
        • Commercial Litigation
      • Negligence
      • Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR)
    • Divorce & Family Law
      • FAQs – Family Law
      • Separation and Divorce in Australia
        • FAQs – Separating from my spouse
        • FAQs – Divorce
      • Property Orders and Financial Disputes
        • Consent Orders and Binding Financial Agreements
        • FAQs – Property and Financial Matters
        • FAQs – Spousal Maintenance
      • Children, Parenting Orders and Agreements
        • FAQs – Children and parenting matters
        • FAQs – Child Support
      • De facto Relationships and Separation
        • FAQs – De facto relationships
      • Family Court or Federal Circuit Court?
      • Collaborative Family Law
      • FAQs – Seeking advice from a family lawyer
    • Property & Conveyancing
      • Retail & Commercial Leases
      • Selling a Property
        • FAQ – Selling a Property
      • Buying a Property
        • FAQ – Buying a Property
      • Transferring Property in NSW
      • Property Owners Disputes
      • Caveats
      • Mortgages & Securities
      • Option Agreements
      • Electronic Conveyancing in NSW
    • Wills & Estate Planning
      • Drafting a Will
        • Children in Wills
        • Letter of Wishes
        • Digital Assets in a Will
      • Power of Attorney
      • Guardianship & Enduring Guardians
      • Elder Law
      • FAQ’s – Wills and Estates
    • Bankruptcy & Insolvency
      • Personal Bankruptcy
        • Bankruptcy Notices
        • Debt Agreements
        • Enforcing a Debt or Judgment
      • Company Insolvency
        • Creditor’s Statutory Demand
        • Creditor’s Petition
        • Winding Up or Deregistering a Company
    • Building & Construction
      • Building & Construction Contracts
      • Building & Construction Disputes
      • Security for Payments Act
    • Employment Law
    • Insurance Law
    • Public Notary
  • Online Quotes
    • Simple Will Quote
    • Debt Recovery Quote
    • Conveyancing Quote
  • Meet the Team
    • Stephen Rockliff
    • John Snelgrove
    • Nicole Rockliff
    • Dick Herman
    • Michelle Rockliff
    • Anthi Balafas
    • Cristian Fuenzalida
    • Jinny Kim
    • Nathan Rockliff
    • Peter Gell
    • Michael Hutson
  • News & Articles
  • Contact Us
You are here: Home / News / Business & Commercial / Excessive EFTPOS And Credit Card Surcharges To Be Banned Across All Australian Businesses From Today!

Excessive EFTPOS And Credit Card Surcharges To Be Banned Across All Australian Businesses From Today!

From 1 September 2017, a ban on excessive surcharges for using EFTPOS and credit cards to pay for purchases will apply to all Australian businesses. The ban, which has since 1 September 2016 been in effect for large businesses, will now extend to all businesses that are either based in Australia or use an Australian bank.

ban on excessiv

The ban means businesses, will now only be able to charge customers for what it actually costs them to process payments for EFTPOS, MasterCard, VISA and American Express cards, including bank fees and terminal costs. A payment surcharge will be considered excessive if it exceeds the permitted surcharge as defined by the RBA Standard and therefore exceeds the applicable cost of accepting that payment type. ACCC chairman Michael Schaper said, “Our message to business is that you are not to add on any of your internal costs when calculating what the surcharge you will charge customers will be.”

The ACCC has said that businesses which want to set a single, flat surcharge across multiple payment methods, must set the surcharge at the cost of the lowest-cost method, not an average.

How the ban will be enforced and what are the penalties for breach?

The ACCC, which is responsible for enforcing the ban, holds powers to enforce compliance with the ban and investigate complaints. Surcharge information notices can be issued by that ACCC to businesses and banks, mandating that they provide evidence of actual costs incurred by businesses for accepting payments, in order to determine whether or not their surcharges exceed the permitted amounts.

Dr Schaper said, “If you are getting charged a fee and you think it might be excessive, then obviously the first thing to do is to try and talk to the business itself and ask what it is about. If not you can certainly raise it with the Commission and we actually have fairly extensive powers and we can go back to businesses and ask them to validate.”

If the ACCC has reasonable grounds to believe that a business has breached the ban, it can issue an infringement notice or take court action against the business, seeking pecuniary penalties. The ACCC has said that businesses should have received merchant statements from their financial institutions in July, setting out their cost of acceptance for each payment method.

Payment types not covered by the ban include American Express cards issued directly by American Express, BPay, PayPal, Diners Club cards and cheques.

For more information, contact us.

Primary Sidebar

Search

Categories

  • General
  • Employment Law
  • News
  • Probate, Estate Administration & Disputes
  • Property & Conveyancing
  • Services
  • Superannuation
  • Taxation
  • Uncategorised
  • Wills & Estate Planning
  • Bankruptcy & Insolvency
  • Building & Construction
  • Business & Commercial
  • Civil Disputes & Litigation
  • Debt Recovery
  • Divorce & Family Law
  • General Legal Services
  • Insurance Law

Online Enquiry

* indicates required field

News & Articles

Managing Employees in Australia given the Impact of COVID-19

We stress that due to the unprecedented nature of the pandemic and the very rapidly changing landscape, the guidelines below are general in nature and subject to change. Many of the laws that now apply to this situation were not written with regard to what is currently occurring. Therefore please exercise caution in relying on […]

Temporary Changes to Insolvency Laws in Australia due to the Coronavirus (COVID-19) Crisis

In a move aimed to lessen the economic impact on businesses and individuals caused by the Coronavirus pandemic, the Australian Government has introduced some changes to insolvency laws in Australia that apply to personal and corporate insolvency regimes. This includes a temporary increase to the threshold in which creditors can issue a statutory demand on […]

Coronavirus (COVID-19) Update

Following on from the extensive reporting in relation to the COVID-19 pandemic we have implemented a number of protocols to enable the business to continue operating if a staff member or principal is diagnosed with the virus and/or the office needs to close for a period of time. Our staff and principals have adopted best […]

Footer

The Rockliff Snelgrove Difference

We have lawyers that are Accredited Specialist in Business Law and Family Law
We have over 100 years of combined experience
Our lawyers and consultants are experts in their field to enable us to give you tailored legal advice to suit your specific needs

Contact Us

  • Level 5, 50 King Street

    Sydney NSW 2000

  • (02) 9299 4912

Connect With Us

  • Email
  • Facebook
  • LinkedIn

Translate

Newsletter

Sign up to our newsletter for updates on our latest news, articles and special promotions!

Our website does not give legal advice. All materials are for informational purposes only and should not be relied upon as legal advice. The use of this website is subject to our:
WEBSITE DISCLAIMER – PRIVACY POLICY – TERMS & CONDITIONS OF USE
Liability limited by a scheme approved under Professional Standards Legislation.Copyright © 2020 · Website hosted by Lift Legal · Log out