Do you use credit card or cash?

[unloadonme]

The gas stations show both prices on their signs

That's appalling. Is it universal, or can you take your custom elsewhere?

 

[Dargelos]

If they were, in the interests of fairness, forced to unify their the prices, which do you think would be the way they would do it?
A Cash price for card customers also
B Card price for cash customers also
I am not a gambling man but I would bet my life on option B, wouldn't you?

 

[unloadonme]

If they were, in the interests of fairness, forced to unify their the prices, which do you think would be the way they would do it?
A Cash price for card customers also
B Card price for cash customers also
I am not a gambling man but I would bet my life on option B, wouldn't you?

Wouldn't a business try to undercut its competitors in order to generate sales?

 

[rareboy]

Yeah, sometimes you see that here (in small businesses usually), but the price of the goods is still the same.

Absolutely. I don't think we'd put up with dual pricing structure here and certainly hidden charges are illegal.

But that is why it is likely legal as described. The vendor is openly showing customers the premium paid by accepting electronic transactions.

Something tells me that someone is also keeping 2 sets of books.

 

[unloadonme]

But that is why it is likely legal as described. The vendor is openly showing customers the premium paid by accepting electronic transactions.

I have no doubt that what peeonme has described is legal in the US. If all of the filling stations in an area operate the same system, the customer has little choice. If someone were to break ranks, that's where I'd be spending my money.

Something tells me that someone is also keeping 2 sets of books.

That's always a risk with cash trades. With filling stations however, I'd imagine the IRS would have some sort of overview of fuel purchased from wholesalers which would make it difficult for retailers to get away with a material level of off-record sales.

 

[Dargelos]

For some products there is much elasticity of demand, when the price of booze comes down people drink more, when it goes back up they cut down again. If it goes up too much they may decide to give up the habit. The petrol market is not like that. When your car is empty you have no choice but to put some juice in the tank even if the price is ripoff high. And when the price is low you can only fill it up to full, you can't fill it up to more than full nomatter how cheap the petrol is.
You would need to be very clever to run two books for petrol, the pump data is stored electronically, can't be edited. But for cigarette and sweet sales, which make the difference between profit and loss in an independent station, there is plenty of room for turning a blind eye.

 

[rareboy]

For some products there is much elasticity of demand, when the price of booze comes down people drink more, when it goes back up they cut down again. If it goes up too much they may decide to give up the habit. The petrol market is not like that. When your car is empty you have no choice but to put some juice in the tank even if the price is ripoff high. And when the price is low you can only fill it up to full, you can't fill it up to more than full nomatter how cheap the petrol is.
You would need to be very clever to run two books for petrol, the pump data is stored electronically, can't be edited. But for cigarette and sweet sales, which make the difference between profit and loss in an independent station, there is plenty of room for turning a blind eye.

That is funny to me, because the Liquor Control Board of Ontario, the largest purchaser of wine and spirits on earth, doesn't actually have a mandate to do this at the point of sale.

But I would say that in the US, I have no doubt that retail gas vendors carry 2 sets of books if they are advertising 2 tiers of pricing. All they have to do is cover the cost of their gas.

 

[Rickrock]

I have also seen some gas stations here giving a discount for cash sales although that practice isn't too common. Merchants do have to pay the credit card company a charge on credit card sales (perhaps 2% or something), so they figure they can give a discount on cash sales.

 

[me203]

Merchants do have to pay the credit card company a charge on credit card sales (perhaps 2% or something), so they figure they can give a discount on cash sales.

I think there might also be a fixed charge in there, too. All of which explains why some places will say $5 minimum (or whatever) for using a payment card.

 

[rareboy]

I have also seen some gas stations here giving a discount for cash sales although that practice isn't too common. Merchants do have to pay the credit card company a charge on credit card sales (perhaps 2% or something), so they figure they can give a discount on cash sales.

And yet they make themselves targets by holding so much cash. Based on the above though, it looks like the seller is doing as you say...discounting the 2%ish charges they pay the CC company and being pretty honest about it.

 

[Kahaih]

Looked into this a bit just out of curiosity.

First, it seems most gas stations consider debit card the same as cash. - no extra charge for transactions at the pump.

Then, the average US thank size is 10 - 15 US gal. So US customers pay only a US buck to a US buck and a half for the privilege of using someone else's money.

 

[72-Jay]

Here allot of gas stations charge the same if using credit-card or cash, but if you use their own card or app, then its 10 cents less.

 

[72-Jay]

I think there might also be a fixed charge in there, too. All of which explains why some places will say $5 minimum (or whatever) for using a payment card.

Yes, there is a fixed charge, then ontop of that, a percentage fee.

 

[peeonme]

Some of my customers pay me on line with a credit upon receipt of an invoice for my service(s). This costs me 2.5% of the amount charged. I don't pass this along I count it as the cost of doing business. It does save my time with regard to going to the bank to make deposits.

 

[EJMichaels]

Are traders in the US allowed to charge more for goods if payment is made by credit card? That's not allowed here.

I see it often. One small business that recently started doing this said they had $40,000 in credit card fees and had to start adding a surcharge. It's a fee added at checkout, not different posted prices (except at gas stations, which have been doing that for decades)

 

[Dargelos]

Places that I get car parts, building materials and paint from have a trade price list and a public list. Turning up filthy in a van I usualy get the trade price. If you are smartly dressed in a car then you get the public price. You may think that is terrible. I'm happy as long as I get the lower price.

 

[Alistair]

I see it often. One small business that recently started doing this said they had $40,000 in credit card fees and had to start adding a surcharge. It's a fee added at checkout, not different posted prices (except at gas stations, which have been doing that for decades)

I was surprised to see the different prices for gas when I was in Maryland. I’ve never seen that done in Ohio.

 

[rareboy]

It would be unheard of here.

Our gas retailers just charge everyone the highest price, whether cash, debit or charge.
Part of the reason is that we are almost 100% pay at the pump, so this reduces the O/H for the retailer since likely 90% of sales are just pump and go.

 

[Dargelos]

Pay at pump is bad news for the smaller fuel stations, they can't get the fuel at the price the big guys can so they are selling at a very low margin. They need customers to come into the shop and buy something else that has a higher margin, magazines, ciggies, chocolate, anything, to bump up the transaction value so that the owner can make a living. Pay at pump customers don't set foot in the shop.
As an aside, these smaller garages love it when the stoners float in at 5am and buy a whole shitload of candybars. Not driving, we hope.

 

[metta]

The average interest rate on credit cards is now over 20%. The average is at a record high. IMO: Don't keep balances on your credit cards.