frequently asked questions

  • Credit card processing is the electronic conversion of transactions initiated by customers using payment cards into funds transferred from the customer's account to the merchant's account. It involves several parties, including the customer, merchant, acquiring bank, issuing bank, and payment processor.

  • There are several types of credit card processing, including:

    • In-person: Transactions made at a physical location using a card reader.

    • Online: Transactions made through an online store or website.

    • Mobile: Transactions made through a mobile device using a mobile payment app.

    • Mail order/telephone order (MOTO): Transactions made over the phone or through mail.

  • Credit card processing fees typically include:

    • Interchange fee: A fee charged by the card network (Visa, Mastercard, etc.).

    • Assessment fee: A fee charged by the card network to cover operating costs.

    • Discount rate: A fee charged by the merchant acquirer (the company that processes your transactions).

    • Other fees: Additional fees may apply, such as chargeback fees, monthly fees, or statement fees.

  • To reduce credit card processing fees, consider the following:

    • Work with Florida Card Services to reduce your processing rates.

    • Accept debit cards instead of credit cards when possible.

    • Offer discounts for cash or check payments.

    • Implement fraud prevention measures to reduce chargebacks.

  • PCI Compliance stands for Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard. It is a set of security standards designed to protect cardholder data. All businesses that accept, store, or transmit credit card information must comply with PCI DSS.

  • When choosing a credit card processor, consider the following factors:

    • Fees and pricing structure

    • Payment processing methods

    • Customer support

    • Security features

    • Contract terms

    • Additional services offered

  • A chargeback occurs when a cardholder disputes a transaction with their bank. To prevent chargebacks, implement strong fraud prevention measures, obtain proper authorization, and provide excellent customer service.

  • A payment gateway is a software application that authorizes payment transactions between a merchant and a customer’s bank. It is a crucial component of the credit card processing process.

  • EMV is a global standard for chip-card payments. It provides increased security compared to magnetic stripe cards and helps reduce fraudulent transactions.

  • Tokenization is a security method that replaces sensitive cardholder data with a unique token. This helps protect card information from breaches.