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[frumpy]

Last I had heard it was illegal to impose a fee for using credit over cash, hence you don't see it at gas stations like you used to in the late 80's.  Pretty sure Camilla was policing this last year, as it's a dealer's choice to accept those fees or to just be cash only.  Anyone know if this has changed?  Really with the economy the way it is everything is a buyer's market anyways.

Sort of. It's usually against the contract that the merchant has with the credit card company to impose a minimum. Usually they aren't allowed to charge a fee, too - but that one is a little trickier.

This isn't really on the consumer's behalf, though. When merchants charge minimums or fees, people may not want to use their credit cards, and that means the credit card companies make less money!

I did some research & looked into this matter. By law, dealers cannot charge a "minimum". However, they are allowed to have a "processing fee". Case in point, ordering tickets from venues such as Live Nation and Ticketmaster. They have "processing fees" per ticket. Or, when you use PayPal/eBay. They take an additional percentage out of your sales. Another example, when you're late for a credit card payment and want to pay over the phone, the company will charge you a $15-$25 fee for this service. In short, it all comes down to the technical wording.

As quoted from Ticketmaster's FAQ:

Convenience Charges and Order Processing Fees
Tickets purchased on Ticketmaster.com and Ticketmaster.ca are typically subject to a per ticket convenience charge and a non-refundable per order processing fee. In many cases, delivery prices will also be owed.

[Gwydion]

Last I had heard it was illegal to impose a fee for using credit over cash, hence you don't see it at gas stations like you used to in the late 80's.  Pretty sure Camilla was policing this last year, as it's a dealer's choice to accept those fees or to just be cash only.  Anyone know if this has changed?  Really with the economy the way it is everything is a buyer's market anyways.

Also if you check the posted prices for cash vs credit at gas stations, credit is always a few cents more. Just in the last year or so it seems they started putting different prices up depending on how you paid, which is why I'll never use my card at a gas station.

[Kertus]

Last I had heard it was illegal to impose a fee for using credit over cash, hence you don't see it at gas stations like you used to in the late 80's.  Pretty sure Camilla was policing this last year, as it's a dealer's choice to accept those fees or to just be cash only.  Anyone know if this has changed?  Really with the economy the way it is everything is a buyer's market anyways.

Having known some small business owners if the transaction is small enough depending on which plan and which credit card company it is, it can pretty much eat up the entire profit portion of a sale when it's too small.
You should at least have enough cash on you for smaller sales, putting things below $10 or even $20 is kinda a dick move

[kimonomomo]

My merchant processor charges me a fee plus a percentage of the total sale, which is why most vendors don't want to deal with smaller purchases. If you buy a $5 item and use your card, I'm out at least 10-15% of that sale. It's not really worth it. For a big purchase, say $300, it's ridiculous for me NOT to take a credit card. However, it's a lot slower as I have to process the payment over the phone, and I'm more likely to haggle when cash is involved.

As for sales tax, I believe the rate is around 9.5% in San Jose? To save time and hassling with loose change, I typically add the local sales tax in to my prices at the show so I don't have to calculate it later. As a business I have to pay my pound of flesh to the state later in the year, and I calculate that from my sales receipts.

[hikanteki]

My merchant processor charges me a fee plus a percentage of the total sale, which is why most vendors don't want to deal with smaller purchases. If you buy a $5 item and use your card, I'm out at least 10-15% of that sale. It's not really worth it. For a big purchase, say $300, it's ridiculous for me NOT to take a credit card. However, it's a lot slower as I have to process the payment over the phone, and I'm more likely to haggle when cash is involved.

Yes, I've noticed that dealers are more likely to make deals if you pay in cash.

As for sales tax, I believe the rate is around 9.5% in San Jose? To save time and hassling with loose change, I typically add the local sales tax in to my prices at the show so I don't have to calculate it later. As a business I have to pay my pound of flesh to the state later in the year, and I calculate that from my sales receipts.

Close...9.25

[anime101]

Last I had heard it was illegal to impose a fee for using credit over cash, hence you don't see it at gas stations like you used to in the late 80's.  Pretty sure Camilla was policing this last year, as it's a dealer's choice to accept those fees or to just be cash only.  Anyone know if this has changed?  Really with the economy the way it is everything is a buyer's market anyways.

Actually, as a merchant, you can charge a higher price point for the use of a credit card, as long as it is advertised that way. That's why you see gas stations with CASH:$$$ and CREDIT:$$$ prices. As for minimum purchase amounts (<$20), that has been legitimized by the recent credit card legislation that went in effect in august of last year.

-anime101

[HeeroYuy135]

I predict to see more convention dealers to take credit cards this year especially with the introduction of Square (http://www.sqaureup.com) which a) streamlines the usage of credit cards with the use of a smartphone and b) the rates for Square are much cheaper than most rates of portable credit card machines.