Who pays the card fees when Slice says processing costs the merchant nothing?
Summary
Customers who pay by card cover it. Slice's Dual Pricing posts the card price and gives cash and check payers 3.99% off, so the merchant keeps the full card price and pays Slice a flat monthly equipment fee instead, starting at $49.99 for a Clover Flex. Slice calls this a cash discount, and its FAQ says it is not a credit or debit card surcharge program.
Which Slice this is
Another service called Slice shows up in the same searches. This one is the payment business at startslice.com. Its footer says Slice Marketing, LLC is a registered Independent Sales Organization of Citizens Bank, N.A., in Providence, Rhode Island, so the bank on the processing side is Citizens and Slice is the sales channel. The site's terms of service use a slightly different name, "Slice Business Marketing LLC and its affiliates," and put disputes into individual AAA arbitration under New York law.
The math at the register
Slice says Dual Pricing offsets merchant fees "without increasing your sale price." That holds if the old shelf price becomes the card price. The customer paying by card then pays what they always paid, and the customer paying cash pays less.
The starter kit is a terminal plus signs for the front door and the checkout explaining the cash discount. The FAQ calls the program a discount for cash or check that is "allowed in all states," and says it is not a surcharge. The homepage line about "recent law changes" rests, in the FAQ, on a May 2011 quote from a Federal Trade Commission spokesman and news coverage of Visa and Mastercard settlements. What Visa itself requires of a cash-discount display is covered in the piece on free processing and surcharges.
The monthly fee
| Device | Monthly price on Slice's sign-up page |
|---|---|
| Clover Flex | $49.99 |
| Clover Mini | $59.99 |
| Clover Station | $99.99 |
| Clover Station Duo | $119.99 |
Each device also shows a second, higher monthly figure ($90.99 for the Flex). The fixed price covers installation, service, receipt paper, and overnight terminal replacement, and the page pitches it as the price of eliminating processing fees. Under the terms of service, subscription fees bill on the 1st of each month, you can cancel from your account settings at any time, fees already paid are not refunded, and Slice can change the fee with 30 days' notice.
Costs that only appear in the FAQ
- Visa's Network Participation Fee shows up as one line on the monthly statement, with a $3.00 minimum even in a month with no Visa sales.
- PCI compliance validation is free with a Slice merchant account.
- Visa, Mastercard, and Discover sales are deposited the next business day, depending on the type of business.
- If you want out of Dual Pricing, Slice says it will switch you to traditional interchange pricing. The only traditional rate on the site is the homepage's "Start from 1.29%," with no per-transaction fee listed.
Sources
- startslice.com
- startslice.com/processing
- startslice.com/faq/dual-pricing
- startslice.com/faq
- startslice.com/zero-fee/processing/quick-start
- startslice.com/zero-fee/processing/terms-of-use
Related on this site
- Who pays when a card processor advertises zero fees?
- Where on a merchant statement do you find what card processing actually cost you?
- Does a flat rate, interchange-plus, tiered, or subscription plan cost a merchant the least?
- What the headline rate leaves out
- Every provider we hold, and which publish a rate
Written by Kaz (pen name). Figures are copied from providers' published pricing pages on the dates shown. We have not used these products. Corrections: contact form.