If the industry is waiting for merchants to make major changes to the way their payment processes as a result of the Durbin Amendment rules, it might want to take a seat – looks like it’s going to be a while. One of the first surveys regarding the impact of debit interchange regulation on merchants has been conducted by Internet Retailer and the results may surpise you.
“The survey results suggest that many online retailers are still unaware about the debit card changes, and others are reluctant to influence how consumers pay. 39.6% of respondents said they didn’t know debit card fees were going down; a further 43.2% said they have no plans to encourage more debit card spending on their retail sites, while 17.1% will take steps to lower their costs by encouraging debit card payments.“
That’s a resounding 80%+ of merchant respondents that have no reaction to the new rules. However, there are some that intend to encourage debit payments one way or another, but the mix of cost, transaction form, and risk is a complex calculation at the end of the day. So complex that it may be beyond the reach (or the interest) of smaller merchants – just the constituency this legislaiton was supposed to help.
Read full article: http://www.internetretailer.com/2011…t-card-changes
