Debit Cards

[Dedios]

Hi all for the first time :), I am setting up a webshop and I have got most of the site up and running, one of the things I still have to do is determine how my customers will pay, I have spent a lot of time speaking to other shopkeepers about what payment solutions they have and the pros and cons of different methods.

One of the thing things that has really surprised me is that some of them had gripes about debit cards (mainly concerning fees and chargebacks), others where full of praise. This left me slightly concerned as I was getting very different points of view depending on who I spoke to.

What I am really looking for is for people to tell me what the issues are if any and what to look out for? Also can someone point me in the right direction to find out what these charges are.

Sorry if it all seems a bit of a ramble but I suppose I am just looking for a list of pro's and con's for debit cards and some idea of the charges involved.

Best Regards

Jamma

[BootCamp]

Surely with the widespread use of cards all forms of CC and Debit Card are cost efficent to use?

[Christiane]

Chargebacks will depend on your industry, I've never had any.

Credit card fees are a percentage of the transaction, whereas debit cards are around £0.15 to £0.25 per transaction.

Bear in mind setting up a merchant account to take cards online may take a few weeks.

Bottom line is if you don't take debit cards, you are ruling out a lot of potential customers!

[sirearl]

well its cheaper to take debit cards,so whats the gripe.?


You take the money anyway you can,worry about getting customers first.

Earl

[IridiumCorp]

Dedios,

You should be accepting both credit and debit cards. It gives your customers a choice. The average online shop will see 60-70% debit cards (of course depending on your target market). They do not offer the consumer as much protection as using a credit card however for the average merchant they are cheaper to take.

[peterstagg]

Dedios,
All of the above are the reasons for taking debit cards. Narrowing down to just Credit Cards will remove a significant number of customers.

Debit cards are cheaper to process, many people in this economic environment would look to using them more than their CC's.

Just exactly how else do you expect them to pay over the internet?

Peter

[Dedios]

Well people have mentioned other methods like POLi? Sorry if I am coming across as naive.

[MartCactus]

The main downside with debit cards is not from the merchant's side, its from the consumers.

Since its not a credit product, the protection under consumer credit acts is more limited.

If you buy something with a credit card and the company goes bust before its delivered (or its faulty) the credit card company takes the hit - you get the money back. With debit card this isn't normally the case. So as a consumer you're much better off using a credit card even if you don't need borrow money and pay it off in full each month.