Several credit card processors impose unexpected fees and services with minimal notice to merchants. These charges are often embedded in the fine print of contract language or tucked away in lengthy statements. Over time, these incremental adjustments can significantly surpass typical merchant pricing some of which have exceeded 6%.

Furthermore, as businesses become entrenched in POS and software systems with integrated payment functionalities, it breeds anti-competitive behavior. This entrenchment often locks businesses into a dual dependency, making alternatives costly and less attractive, limiting free market choices. 

Additionally, the hidden nature of these costs in illegible statements hampers transparent pricing, positioning these providers in a commanding role. This dynamic threatens the integrity of a balanced competitive marketplace.

Ideally, businesses should easily read and understand their fees, delegate credit card fees to customers, promote cost-effective payment options, or steer towards economical choices. However, this is not the reality. Card brands have limited cash discounting, created complex, illegible pricing schemes, and made it near impossible to negotiate pricing with credit card processors without significant knowledge of the industry, profit margins and complicated and ever-changing cost structures (Interchange).

If you’re a US-based, merchant accepting credit cards, there is a high probability that you are paying excessive fees and you’re not alone. Join the growing community fighting against these questionable pricing practices. Professional arbitrators estimate that 70% of business owners may be eligible for compensation.

Qualifications for Eligibility:

• US-based merchants with settlement accounts located in the United States and;
• Merchants accepting credit card payments for greater than three (3) months and;
• Processing volume is greater than five thousand dollars ($5,000) per month or sixty thousand dollars ($60,000) per annum.
• Companies with low chargeback risk or SIC codes that are not considered high risk (see high-risk SIC codes)
• Ammunition – 3483
• Check Cashing Agencies – 6099
• Petroleum Refining – 2911
• National Commercial Banks – 6021
• Gaming or Gambling Activities – 7999
• Loan Brokers – 6163
• Pawn shops – 5932
• Political campaigns, candidates, or committees – 8651
• Correctional Institutions – 9223
• Night Clubs* – 5813

*Please note that this SIC classification may not always be considered high-risk.

No, there is no commitment. Participants will join a collective arbitration, with many merchants filing individual claims against several processors based on similar concerns.

There are NO required changes in service providers, hardware, software, POS systems, or other infrastructure. This is NOT an offer for competitive credit card processing services. 

In terms of time and resources, very minimal involvement from our clients is needed outside of a brief questionnaire which takes approximately five (5) minutes to complete, time to gather and provide the required documentation, review agreements, future savings, and reduced price contracts from your existing credit card processing vendor. In all, we estimate no more than one (1) hour of time commitment from our clients.

Our company, Payment Brokers, is a professional arbitrator that specializes in credit card processing fee negotiation. We utilize advanced statement and contract analysis to identify what is negotiable and the possible savings that are available. We utilize this data to create points of negotiation and professionally arbitrate the matter with your existing credit card processing vendor until we get a resolution for our clients. Our advanced tracking software maintains the pricing each month, notifying clients of any changes by their processing vendor, and continues to maintain the contracted pricing.

You can learn more about us online at https://www.paymentbrokers.com

1. Fill out the claimant form and meet with a case worker.
2. Submit all documentation of previous credit card processing records for review by our arbitrators.
3. Review analysis of fees,  possible renumeration of previous fees, and future savings from reduced contract pricing with existing credit card processing vendors.
4. Sign agreement for arbitration with existing credit card processing vendor.
5. Completion of arbitration by our team with your existing credit card processing vendor.
6. Receive monthly ongoing tracking of contracted pricing, savings, and monitoring of future price changes.

No sensitive information is required to do a statement analysis. All that is required is a copy of your original credit card processing agreement and credit card processing statements. These statements do not have any identifying information like bank account information, credit card numbers, or other personal or business information.

For publicly traded companies that believe these documents fall under MNPI, we are happy to sign NDAs with covered persons and entities disclosures.

A standard analysis can be completed in less than 1 business day, but a full analysis can vary depending on the scope and complexity of the processor statements.

The overall arbitration process varies based on the processor and can take up to 4 weeks to process after which there is an ongoing monthly monitoring process to maintain the pricing/savings that are promised to our clients.

No, this is not a lawsuit or class action settlement. Arbitration varies from standard lawsuits. It’s a unique way for parties to resolve disputes out of court, with the aid of a third-party arbitrator/negotiator rather than through court trials.

While outcomes aren’t guaranteed, research suggests that most participating merchants could claim anywhere between ten thousand dollars ($10,000) to seventy thousand dollars ($70,000) per annum. We have documented cases of companies saving as little as two hundred dollars ($200) per month and as much as one million dollars ($1,000,000) per annum on an ongoing basis. Please also note that we will not be able to assist with arbitration for clients that we can not achieve a minimum of $150/mth savings.

It costs nothing to sign up, there is zero cost out of pocket, and our arbitrators only get paid a percentage of the funds you received from our efforts or have been proven to save after you review and agree to the savings. Payment Brokers cover all fees and costs necessary to win your case. There’s no interest, and you’re free from any financial obligation if there’s no victory.

There is no catch. We believe merchants have been limited when it comes to credit card processing fees. We’re now helping these business owners take action. It doesn’t cost anything to sign up, and the arbitrators only get paid if they win your claim and only after the money has been received or savings have been documented and agreed to by our clients.

Arbitration processes are completely confidential and are generally quicker than traditional class actions. Our firm, Payment Brokers, are experts in credit card processing fee arbitration, and cover all fees and costs necessary to win your case. There’s no interest, and you’re free from any financial obligation if there’s no victory.

You have several options

• Start by checking to make sure you are eligible in the above FAQs
• Fill out a Claim Form Online
• Reach out to our firm directly

We don’t recommend it. “Do-it-yourself” negotiations have some major hurdles to achieving any success. Some of these points include but are not limited to the following;

• Understanding interchange and individual transaction classification
• Knowing the rate and fee structures, hidden fees like BIN, assessments, and transaction fees
• Contract terms, points of negotiation, and the likelihood of certain negotiable points
• Profitability of the acquirer, ISO or ISV (helps to understand what credit card processors and software vendors are willing to accept)
• Interworkings of processors, hierarchy of communication, and LP process.

If you are an Eligible Company and you do nothing, you will likely see price increases 2+ times a year and will continue to pay excessive fees over interchange. These increases are usually timed with interchange updates which are published on or around April and October of each year. These increases are often sent in notices on your credit card processing statement and may look unsuspecting as “regulatory” or other “dues and assessments” imposed by Visa, MasterCard, or American Express.