UK Retail Card Processors & Handsets

[KoalaBrain]

Hi UKBF,

I'm interested in find out out what opinions are on card/payment processors in the UK for brick and mortar retailers.

I have generally found (assumed?) that established traders much preferred to use their bank-supplied card processing facilities (like Barclaycard) rather than the likes of Stripe, Paypal, etc, as it is one less party to deal with, has lower fees, and integrates with their existing business banking.

The downside of this was that it did not make it possible to directly integrate the payment device into our EPOS experience - the shop attendant must enter the payment amount into the card machine/PDQ manually. Most PDQ handsets do not seem to provide published API details for integration, or the banks do not provide an online payment API for getting data from a transaction.

While I'm keeping an eye on Stripe and their developer-friendly terminal which is currently awaiting release, I'm interested if anyone else has any experience with other processors which offer developer integrations.

Is the lack of EPOS integration with the credit card handset a deal-breaker for your business when looking at EPOS options, or does the lower card processing fee take priority over not having to enter the amount into the handset/overall transaction speed?

 

[bovine]

Thats not how card integration works anymore.

You integrate with someone like Paymentsense or Sagepay, which handles all the transactional part. You talk to their software, their software talks to the PED and payment gateway. Once the transaction is approved, you get a response back to your system which then handles the the completion of the sale and printing receipts etc.

Stripe etc are great for some, but the fees can be offputting. Once they get over a certain volume, other options are preferred.

 

[KoalaBrain]

I do have a bit of catching up to do on UK payment processors. I had seen those two services before, but it's one thing to see that they exist and another to find out which ones are sought after. Thank you very much!

 

[Simon-TP]

Thats not how card integration works anymore.

Stripe etc are great for some, but the fees can be offputting. Once they get over a certain volume, other options are preferred.

Stripe, iZettle, Sum-up etc no doubt is a good option for some start-ups as there are no monthly fees/contracts but I agree that their higher fees can make it less cost effective once turnover increases. There is also the fact that these smaller (often flimsier) devices are not as suited to some businesses as others. For example, how long will a small white calculator type device last in an MOT garage full of burly mechanics with hands like shovels!

 

[gingerdad]

We're going the opposite way sick of dealing with card processing companies, adding extra charges and fees, and though iZettle is more expensive per transaction its pretty much on a par once you take the fees out for our small business.

 

[pee]

I've found there is so much trickery involved with some card companies.

First Date tried to charge me £400 after my contract ended.

Annecto set me up on 2 contracts, 3 years on card machine 4 years on card processing so they could potentially shaft me from 2 sides.

So far Barclaycard have been the best for me.

Machine rental, pci, authorisation etc all have fees attached on top of the card % fee.
Due to all the additional fees card processing has become expensive over the years.

Going forward I'm looking at going with the likes of sum up, buy the machine £149 and pay a %, that's it.

No hidden fees, no pci, no authorisation so no getting shafted at any point due to no contract, as far as I can see.

 

[KoalaBrain]

Thanks so much for the useful information folks!

 

[adamdylan]

Epos and card machines. I read they were shark infested waters?

Cheapest rates :
For volume cardswitcher uk website Cheapest I got was with cardsuk who use ecomm I got per transaction .35% debit .5% credit no hidden fees terminal hire pm 12.90+v pci 3.50.....
(I contacted ecomm direct and they gave me their uk rep Fallon Price, a lovely girl who quoted me higher !!!)

(I wish I had a business that gave me a % of peoples sales (not profit) now thats the business to be in. Things will change soon.)

Integration :
If you require integration paymentsense (@ 1%) seem to link with a few pos systems paymentsense com/uk/partners/ but the likes of icr touch (with their closed help website for dealers only) may cost you highly for their support

 

[gingerdad]

Every card processing company i've dealt with are a bunch of robbing bastards and liars.