Card Payment Direct Review

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4
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How did they treat you? ▼

Note: As of September 2021, the Card Payment Direct website has been down for some time, and it appears they have opened a new business under the name Automotive Payment Club. We will be writing a review for this new business soon and will no longer be updating this review.

A Possible iPayment Reseller

Card Payment Direct is a merchant account provider headquartered in Scottsdale, Arizona. The company caters to small and medium-sized retail and e-commerce businesses in the United States. It appears to be an ISO of iPayment.

Card Payment Direct Location and Ownership

Launched in 2006, the company is a registered ISO/MSP of Wells Fargo Bank, N. A. in Walnut Creek, California, and is located at 15821 N 79th St Ste 1 Scottsdale, AZ 85260David Moser is listed as the founder and CEO of Card Payment Direct. As of 2020, the main website no longer seems to work and may indicate Card Payment Direct is no longer in business. If any readers have any up-to-date knowledge on the status of the company please leave a comment below.

Card Payment Direct Review Table of Contents

  • Costs & Contract: Card Payment Direct offers a three-year contract through iPayment with an early termination fee of $350.
  • Complaints & Service: Card Payment Direct has received fewer than 10 public complaints.
  • BBB Rating: Card Payment Direct has an “A+” rating and has received 0 complaints and 0 reviews in the past three years. The company has been accredited by the BBB since 2011.
  • Sales & Marketing: Card Payment Direct appears to hire independent sales representatives and has received some complaints about its sales practices.
  • Rates & Fees: How Merchants Got The Best Rates With Card Payment Direct

Card Payment Direct Customer Reviews

Here's What Their Clients Say

Customer Reviews Summary
Total Online Complaints <10
Live Customer Support Yes
Most Common Complaint N/A

Low Complaint Total

We are currently able to locate fewer than 10 Card Payment Direct complaints outside of the BBB, and these complaints do not outright accuse the company of being a scam or a ripoff. Most complaints are from merchants, but at least one is from a sales agent who worked for the company. The merchant complaints report misleading sales tactics, difficulty canceling service, unexpected fees, and poor customer service, while the employee complaint accuses a sales manager of paying out far less in commissions than the employee deserved.

Card Payment Direct Lawsuits

We have not found any outstanding class-action lawsuits or FTC complaints filed against Card Payment Direct. Dissatisfied merchants who wish to pursue a non-litigious course of action against the company should consider reporting it to the relevant supervisory organizations.

Card Payment Direct Customer Support Options

Considering the company’s size, time in business, and contract terms, this is a low number of complaints. The Card Payment Direct website lists a dedicated phone number for merchant support, although this service may actually be outsourced to iPayment. We do not consider the company a top-rated payment processor for great customer service at this time.

Card Payment Direct Online Ratings

Here's How They Rate Online

Online Ratings Summary
Product & Service Complaints 0
Billing & Collection Complaints 0
Advertising & Sales Complaints 0
Guarantee & Warranty Complaints 0
Delivery Complaints 0

No Complaints

Card Payment Direct is an accredited business with the Better Business Bureau. As of this review, the company has an “A+” rating with the BBB and has received no complaints filed against it in the last 36 months.

What Merchants Say

Card Payment Direct has received 0 reviews in the last 36 months. Before that period Card Payment Direct had 1 negative review with the BBB, which has been contested by the company. The original complaint is brief and vague:

Buyer beware!!!! Hidden fees.

Card Payment Direct replied to this review with the following post:

This is NOT a customer of our company, but rather a former disgruntled employee who is no longer with us and is now vigorously trying to disparage our online reputation. We will forward this bogus / fake review along with other activity being perpetrated by this former employee to our legal representation in order to stop / cease this kind of malicious behavior. We apologize (on behalf of this former disgruntled employee) that you (the BBB) was brought into this matter. Based on this explanation, please do NOT publish this review as it is 100% bogus and NOT made by one of our great & wonderful customers. Thank you

The original poster then replied to Card Payment Direct:

I am a customer (going to be former customer) not a disgruntled employee if you need I can provide my customer account #

There’s no way at this time to conclusively determine what happened, but merchants are always encouraged to view BBB profiles with a healthy amount of skepticism.

An “A” Performance

In light of the company’s complaint total and resolution ratio, we agree with the BBB’s rating.

Card Payment Direct Fees, Rates & Costs

A Closer Look at The Contract

Cost & Fees Summary
Swiped Rate 1.00% - 4.99%
Keyed-in Rate 1.00% - 4.99%
Virtual Rate 1.00% - 4.99%
Payment Gateway Fee Undisclosed
Monthly Minimum $25
Chargeback Fee $25
Account Maintenance and Statement Fee $9.99 Per Month
Application and Set Up Fee $195
Gateway Fee $10 Per Month
Wireless Terminal Fee $19.95 Per Month Per Terminal
Annual Fee $99
Early Termination Fee $250-$350
PCI Non-Compliance Fee $30 Per Month
PCI Compliance Fee Variable
Business Verification Fee $25
Regulatory Fee $2
Equipment Lease Terms 48 Month (locked)

Three-Year Contract

The standard Card Payment Direct merchant agreement is a three-year agreement with tiered pricing, an early termination fee of $250 to $350, a $25 monthly minimum fee, a $99 annual fee, an application and setup fee of $195, a monthly account maintenance and statement fee of $9.99, a monthly iAccess Online Viewing fee of 14.95, a chargeback fee of $25 per incident, a monthly gateway fee of $10, a wireless terminal monthly gateway fee of $19.50 per terminal, an annual PCI Compliance fee that will vary according to the merchant’s compliance history, a monthly PCI non-compliance penalty of $30 for merchants who have not completed their PCI self-assessment, a one-time $25 business verification fee due within 30 days of account setup, and a $2 regulatory fee.

Expensive equipment leases through First Data Global Leasing are also associated with Card Payment Direct through iPayment, whose agreements last 48 months and cannot be canceled.

Virtual Terminal and Payment Gateway Pricing

In addition to its storefront payment processing services, Card Payment also dedicates a portion of its website to advertising its virtual terminal and payment gateway services. However, pricing is not disclosed on either of those services. Additional rates and fees, including gateway fees, technical support fees, batch fees, and additional transaction rates typically apply to these e-commerce services.

Fees Galore

All told, a document we received lists 13 different fees of varying amounts that merchants may encounter. Some of these fees may be waived by sales agents after strong negotiation, and, given the fact that this sample document is a MOTO application, some of these fees may not apply to face-to-face merchants. Even so, the overall cost of a Card Payment Direct merchant agreement appears to be much higher than the cheapest merchant accounts, which is consistent with other reports of iPayment’s contract terms.

Card Payment Direct Employee Reviews & Sales Tacitcs

Should You Work For Them?

Jobs & Marketing Summary
Employs Independent Resellers Yes
Advertises Deceptive Rates No
Discloses All Important Terms No

Outside Sales Team

Card Payment Direct appears to hire independently contracted sales agents to market its services. This is a common hiring practice within the industry that often is responsible for elevated complaint rates among merchants. In this case, we are currently able to locate four negative Card Payment Direct reviews that accuse the company’s sales agents of nondisclosure or misrepresentation. Most of these complaints describe inaccurate rate promotion and nondisclosure of fees by sales agents.

High Employee Turnover

We have also found multiple cases in which the agent who signed a merchant up for service was no longer employed by the company within a short span of time. Although the company is showing a low number of complaints related to its marketing tactics, it is apparent that Card Payment Direct does struggle to monitor the conduct of at least a few of its agents. If you suspect that your agent has added hidden fees to your contract, we recommend seeking a third-party statement audit.

Our Card Payment Direct Review Summary

Our Final Thoughts

No Longer in Business

Card Payment Direct rated as a slightly better-than-average merchant services provider according to our rating system; however, it is now out of business.

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Which is Most Important for You?

If you had to pick one, which quality would you say will be the most important with your next credit card processor? Tap or click your selection to register your vote:

  1. Low Transaction Fees
  2. No Monthly Fees
  3. No Contract
  4. Reliable Customer Support
  5. Quick Signup

Testimonials & Complaints

How Did Card Payment Direct Treat You?

12 User Reviews

  • Inna Notovich

    Bravo Jewelers

    My name is Inna, Minnesota. It my first negative feedback. I started work with this company couple years before. It was O.K. for beginning, but after two years we have to go out from business.In June 2021 I contacting with customer service and told about our situation. I was told that I do not need to return the equipment. and every thing fine and I do not have to worry about anything. Now is December. Every single month they charge me $ 119 for service !!! Every month I spend time to contact with this company, each time I spoke with different representative. Last time I asked for a supervisor . I was told that I will receive call back next 24-48 hours. One month left and nothing!!!
    Today I call again and again I was told to wait the call !!!
    Just call, No refund !!!
    I will never recommend to any body this company,No at all !!!

  • Ben

    On July 2016 I signed up with ” CARD PAYMENT DIRECT/1ST CARD DIRECT, By October of 2016 I decided to cancel it due to very high fees. By their own instruction I mailed their equipment along with a letter of cancellation with certified mail on 11/1/16. On 11/3/16 I was charged for last payment. On 12/2/16 I was charged again and also on !/2/17 and 2/2/17. On 2/8/17 I called them and after hours of transferring me to different departments I got nothing, since then I have called them a few more times with no result. what should I do now?

  • Joyce McKenzie

    This company sounded good and started off good, but took a drastic turn for the worst after about 6 months. When EMV cards started coming into play, I started getting warnings on my statements that I needed to have an EMV compliant credit card machine. What they DIDN’T mention was that they were charging $30 a month until I started using the new machine. I began to look for another credit card processing company and specifically instructed Card Direct to NOT send me the new EMV machine they had pitched to me. They sent it anyways, charged me $225.00 for it and now they will not accept return of the un-used machine for refund. They SUCK. Their wait time on the phone for support averages 20-30 minutes. Does your business have time for that??!! Also was promised a $100.00 gift card that I never received. Find another company! I recommend Hartland.

    • Maggie

      The fine print on the bottom of the card says that the gift card will be sent once you have processed $10,000 in credit card sales. If you are small business, don’t hold your breath! It could be years… Most of my customers pay cash

  • S.N.

    This company contacted me to change processors based on 2015 regulations, to stay current I said I would give them a try. When I received the equipment it was not what I was told I had to have to be compliant. When I contacted them they told me there was no such equipment and that they only told people that to get them to change processers. Based on that I told them I did not want their service and returned the equipment never having been used or even setup. Still they started billing my account and I can not get the account never used closed. And I am told that if I block there company at my bank they will send the account I never used to collections.

  • Krista Brown

    Not exactly sure how Card Payment Direct is keeping such a good standing with the BBC because since I have been trying to close my account with them, I’ve been having nothing but problems. Our sales rep told me that cancellation was effective on the date they received their equipment and a signed cancellation letter but we were still charged for the following month. That was August and I am still, today, trying to get the refund after being charged for services in a time period when I didn’t even have procession of the equipment. I was told in September that I’d see the refund in “7-10 business days” by our sales rep, who happens to no longer be with the company. I DID get a statement from Card Payment Direct for the month of August that says there should be $60.10 funded to our account, but the credit hasn’t appeared in the account as of yet (October 2nd). The rep I spoke to today, when she would let me speak without interrupting me, and when she was done basically calling me liar because “We don’t send out refund statements like that” and “Scott (our last rep) was not authorized to give you a credit on your account”. She finally agreed to submit a “refund request” whatever that means, so we’ll see what happens. But I have a feeling this is far from over. Just flat out shady and terrible customer service.

  • Carrie Miller

    I don’t usually post feedback (good or bad) regarding any of the vendors that support my business (as my time is limited with running my business), but in this case with Card Payment Direct I felt compelled to quickly state my overall experience and impressions thus far. We signed up our Auto Repair business almost 2 years ago and have had nothing short of a positive experience with the Comany, the service and the rates / fees we get charged. Everything that was promised by our Sales Rep has been fulfilled and we have currently been saving on average $100 – $150 (depending on our monthly processing) a month compared to what we were paying with a large National Bank used previously. The ONLY thing that I can find or deem as a minor negative with our experience so far is that our Sales Rep is no longer with the Company (we really liked him), but our internal contact at the corp. office that took over our account (after our Sales Rep left) has been wonderful to us and very helpful, she always takes my calls and or at least call me right back when I can’t reach her directly. Overall – VERY satisfied and happy.

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