Court Settlement Lifts Ban on Card Surcharges

Vendors may soon start charging more to customers paying by credit card, thanks to a $7 billion settlement reached between a retailer group and the two largest credit card companies. On July 13, 2012, Visa and MasterCard agreed to pay $7.25 billion to a number of merchants that filed a lawsuit against the card companies in 2005. The lawsuit, brought by Kroger, Payless, ShoeSource, Safeway, and several trade associations, argued that the merchant fees Visa and MasterCard make retailers pay are…