Canadian Interac Fees

[callee]

I'm not sure if this would count as an UL, so please move it if not, but it is something I heard and I'm wondering if it is true.

So the other day I stop in, on impulse, at the local KFC. It was tuesday, and the sign advertised "twoney tuesday." The "twoney" (or "tooney") is the cdn $2 coin. On twoney tuesday a lot of places will offer a special deal for just a twoney. At KFC is was a meal for one. So I stand in line for 5 minutes, all the while smelling those 7 herbs and spices, salivating all the more for that addictive chicken product. When I order my twoney tuesday special, the girl rings it up for $2.28 (tax you know) and I pull out my interac card.

For those who don't know, the interac card is the cdn debit card system. In america, of course, you can have your "visa check card" (or whatever company) and at the store, if you select debit, they will use the visa network already in place to route the money right out of your bank account, right? Well in canada they do not use the credit card network to do this. Rather, they just set up a second, independent network called the interac system, and you get a special card from your bank just for it. We call it a "bank card" and the only thing it is good for is for swipping at the store's interac terminal and using it to debit the money right out of your account. Or using an ATM of course.

So anyway I pull out my interac card and the girl responds, "no, $5 limit for debit." See, each interac transaction costs a few cents. Some stores will just charge the user for this. That's not very popular, though, so most sores just swallow the fee themselves. If they're going to swallow the fee for the sake of your patronage, though, they want to make sure it's worth their while, so it is very common to see posted policies that there is a minimum $5 purchase in order to use the interac system. Because the store is only willing to swallow the fee if you are going to spend atleast $5.

I was a little miffed at the girl. Sure, it's a common policy to have a $5 min., but there was no posting to that effect at the KFC. Had there been a sign I wouldn't have waited in line for 5 minutes, smelling all that chicken and getting all full of anticipation. I had no cash on me, so the cashier turned me away. She was rather snotty about it, I thought. I left quietly, but I was very annoyed.

When I got home I decided to call the manager and complain. It wasn't just that it was unfair of them to enforce the policy when there was no warning, but also that the girl was so rude about it.

The manager was excellent. She was very friendly, and it wasn't long before I was no longer upset at all. She said she had to check with the district manager to find out the proper procedures for my complaint, so she would call me back.

When she did, she gave a curious explanation. This is the legal fact of which I am doubting the veracity. The urban legend, if you will. She explained that headquarters had informed her that since interac counted as a legal form of payment, they were legally prohibted from refusing it, since, of course, any public business by law has to accept any form of legal tender, she claimed. Thus, she explained, it was illegal to refuse interac payments just because the bill was less than $5. To off set the fees for small, under-$5 purchases they were supposed to charge a $0.25 fee.

This struck me as odd, because: a) The $5 min. purchase policy is very common; could all these people be breaking the law? b) I've never seen anyone explain that they'd have to charge a quarter for interact purchases under $5. c) since when does a business always have to accept all legal forms of payment? What about all those businesses that don't accept personal cheques? What on earth is a "legal" form of payment anyway?

I mean, from a please-the-custmer stand point what she said makes sense. I'd be willing to pay an extra quarter for the convenience of using my debit card for under $5 purchases. But as a "legal rule," it sounds like an old wive's tale.

yeah, sorry I took about 500 more words than really needed to explain this, but any thoughts?