FAQs

My quotes

Our online form is designed to be simple and quick to complete so that you can easily get multiple quotes that are comparable to your current costs.  The 2 most common errors that customers make in completing our form are :

1) Ensure your split of card type by debit, credit, premium credit is accurate.  The costs of these card types are materially different and customers often over estimate the percentage of debit cards.  The split you should use is "by transaction value" and can be found on your most recent statement.

2) Ensure the monthly costs shown in our suppliers' quotes are comparable to your current costs. It is essential that you  :

a) Enter the same monthly card turnover as shown on your most recent statement from which you are also extracting your monthly cost

b) Ensure you include your costs of terminals and your payment gateway in your monthly costs if we are also quoting for provision of these.  These costs may currently be shown on a different invoice from your merchant account transactions.


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Yes. You can login andamend your quote as many times as you want. Change any of the inputs to see the impact on your overall costs.


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Yes. You can login to your Cardswitcher account at any time and recover your quote (using your email address and the password you specified when you first got your quotes).  Our quote engine is dynamic so if our suppliers change their pricing before you accept a quote, then your quote will automatically update to reflect the new pricing.


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No. You are only contractually committed once you sign the application forms.


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You will be taken to the home page of your Cardswitcher account. This sets out the stages of the application process. You only need to do the first stage (complete the application form) and your supplier will do the rest.  We advise your selected supplier and they contact you within 24 hours of selection to assist in completing the application forms.  Alternatively you can reserve a time slot for their call from within your Cardswitcher account home page.


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Completing my application

Yes, typically proof of your business bank account (eg void cheque or bank statement), proof of director/owner ID (eg copy of passport) and address (eg utilities bill). On some occasions they may ask for copies of your previous card processing statements if you are switching suppliers.  Your selected supplier will advise on the precise documents required.


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Within 24 hours of selecting a supplier, our supplier will telephone you to assist in completing the application forms.  If there is a specific date/time you would prefer, then you can book a time slot through your Cardswitcher account.  They will complete the form for you over the phone and then forward the completed form to you.  All you need to do is sign and return.  Some of our suppliers have adopted electronic signature so in order to sign and return all you need to is one click (following the instructions they provide).  Completing the forms will take up less than 20 minutes of your time.


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Once you have selected a supplier/quote these are available on your Cardswitcher account home page and can be downloaded at any time.


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Typically anything from 2 – 7 days once you return your signed application forms and any required documents.


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Yes.  Each time your application passes a milestone your supplier will advise you by email and the status on your Cardswitcher account home page will change.  Milestones include Application Submitted, Application Approved, Terminal Despatched.


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Yes. No matter which supplier, bank or ISO you contact, you will need to undertake the exact same process, ie complete the same application forms which are then reviewed by the acquiring bank for credit approval before your MID and terminal/payment gateway is issued and installed.  The additional benefits with Cardswitcher are :

1) We monitor progress to ensure your application is dealt with efficiently by your supplier
2) We update you automatically on progress by email and through your Cardswitcher account
3) We allow you to reserve a specific date/time to complete your applicationat your convenience


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My current contract

Merchant accounts and Payment gateway contracts are usually cancellable at short notice (1-3 months) and provided you give appropriate notice then there should be no termination penalties.

Terminal hire contracts ususally specify a minimum contract term and if you cancel before expiration of this minimum term then there is usually a termination cost.  This cost is normally calculated as the remianing rental payments due up to the end of the minimum term though some suppliers give a discount and others charge an additional "re-stocking fee".

Although termination costs can be £hundreds per terminal, as a rule of thumb if your monthly cost savings by switching are higher than your monthly terminal hire cost then it is more economic to switch sooner, access the savings and incur the termination cost.


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Our suppliers will help you with this by providing a template letter you can send to your current supplier.  We recommend you do this once your new facility is set-up and tested.


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Our suppliers

Your merchant account provider provides a helpdesk for all enquiries relating to your merchant account.  Our suppliers provide a helpdesk for all enquiries relating to your terminal.  This set-up is no different than if you were provided with a terminal and merchant account by a merchant acquirer.  They would still provide 2 separate helpdesks to support each product.


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Always the merchant acquirer providing your merchant account.  These are well known high street banks or reputable blue chip organisations who are members of Mastercard and Visa International.  Your settlement funds are never, at any time, held by our suppliers.


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No matter where you get your merchant services from, you end up with 2 contracts - one for your merchant account and one for your terminal hire.  Our suppliers provide your terminal (and contract directly with you for that) and their merchant acquirer partner will provide your merchant account (and contract directly with you for that).  The role of our suppliers is to arrange the set-up of your merchant account, like a broker.


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All of our suppliers are licensed by their merchant acquirer partners to sell their merchant accounts.  These merchant acquirers are well known high street banks or established blue chip corporations who are very selective about who they appoint to resell their products.  Furthermore, our suppliers are officially licensed by MasterCard and Visa International as Independent Sales Organisation Member Service Providers.


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