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1st National Payment Solutions, established in 1998, is a family-owned merchant account provider headquartered in Syosset, New York. The company is a sub-ISO of 1st National Processing, which is either a DBA or an ISO of iPayment.
1st National Payment Solutions processes payments for all major debit and credit cards. Their services include EMV swipers, terminals and POS systems, mobile and wireless payments, access to payment gateways, EMV swipers and chip readers, PCI compliance, next-day deposits, gift and loyalty programs, check and ACH processing, EBT, payroll processing, business loans, and ATM solutions.
1st National Payment Solutions is a registered ISO/MSP of Woodforest National Bank in Houston, Texas, and is headquartered at 40 Underhill Blvd., Ste. LA1, Syosset, New York 11791. The company also has a Michigan-based office located at 9991 East Cherry Bend Rd, Traverse City, MI 49684. Michael DiGiovanni is listed as the president and CEO of 1st National Payment Solutions.
Some of the merchant solutions offered by 1st National Payment
Item | Result |
---|---|
Total Online Complaints | <10 |
Live Customer Support | Yes |
Most Common Complaint | N/A |
We are currently able to locate a handful of negative 1st National Payment Solutions reviews, two of which accuse the company of being a ripoff or a scam. These 1st National Payment Solutions complaints report difficulty canceling service, poor customer service, fund-holds, and equipment issues. Two of the 1st National Payment Solutions complaints are over three years old, while another complaint was posted in 2011 and referred to issues that took place even before then. If you have your own 1st National Payment Solutions review to make, please do so in the comments below.
The president of 1st National was active in responding to several complaints and appeared to resolve the customers’ issues after an extended period of time. He attributed the delay to organizational holdups related to the need to have multiple higher-ups sign off on a refund. He also appears to have posted on numerous other reviews filed against 1st National Processing for the sole purpose of clarifying that his ISO of the company was not the party in question.
We have not found any outstanding class-action lawsuits or FTC complaints filed against 1st National Payment Solutions. Dissatisfied merchants who wish to pursue a non-litigious course of action against the company should consider reporting it to the relevant supervisory organizations.
The 1st National Payment Solutions website lists a dedicated customer support phone line and a customer support form, and they appear to have similar service to our top-rated payment processor for customer service. After taking into consideration the age of the complaints, their delayed resolutions, and the effort made by the company’s CEO, we have awarded 1st National a score of “A” in this category.
We have located multiple 1st National Payment Solutions customer support phone numbers:
(800) 228-0210 – Toll-Free 24/7 Support
(231) 941-4200 – General Support
(877) 964-1622 – Sales
(516) 921-9488 – New York Fax
(231) 941-4204 – Michigan Fax
(917) 577-6237 – On-Call Tech #1
(917) 577-3149 – On-Call Tech #2
Item | Result |
---|---|
Total BBB Complaints | 1 |
Response Rate | 100% |
Complaints Resolved | 1 |
1st National Payment Solutions has been accredited with the Better Business Bureau since 2006. As of this review, the company has an “A+” rating with the BBB and has had 1 complaint filed against it in the last 36 months. The 1 complaint was resolved to the satisfaction of the merchant.
In addition to the 0 complaints posted to the company’s BBB profile, 1st National Payment Solutions has received 0 informal reviews in the last 36 months. Prior to that period, we documented 1 negative review that detailed difficulty closing the merchant account:
Run away as fast as you can. We just got hit with a brand new, unannounced $99 annual fee. The money has already been taken from our bank account and they refuse to return it. There was no letter, no email, no bank statement announcement notifying us of the new fee. They say they sent out a letter a month ago, and that’s the end of it. The fact that we never received such a letter means nothing. They say that they looked at their costs and decided that they needed to charge a fee, so they just did it. The guy was quite nasty about it, and told me there was nothing I could do about it, they have the money and they’re not giving it back. The service rep stated that they have received many calls of complaints about this and they will not be refunding these fees to any of the customers. When I called ********** Bank, whom they use, the bank transferred my call right back to 1st National’s office. I got the same jerk on the phone. In the past, I’ve never been treated this way by them, and their reps have behaved decently. This guy was over the top nasty. 1st National Processing targets artisans and microbusineses in their advertising, which is we how came to use them several years ago. They have since changed the “Processing” to “Payment Solutions”, but they’re still the same people. At the end of each year, we did cost comparisons of total annual charges, to see what we would have paid had we run cards through PayPal or Square. 1st National always came in higher, but with human customer service, we stayed with them. That changed this past January. It is now mid-November. We kept 1st Nat as a backup, but have not used them more than once or twice since January. There were just too many times when we had to call because there were unexpected and confusing charges. Those were generally resolved, but we got tired of it, and when they mistakenly charged us for one of their other customer’s fees, we were done. We saw that customer’s info on our statement. It’s a security breach. It’s cheaper to let our contract die off than pay their extortionate $295 kick-out fee.
Merchants in similar situations could benefit from researching how to cancel a merchant account without paying a fee.
1st National Payment Solutions also has not received any informal reviews, although it should be noted that these reviews are not subject to verification by the BBB. Given the company’s low complaint total, we agree with the BBB’s rating at this time.
Item | Result | >
---|---|
Cancellation Penalties | Yes |
Monthly & Annual Fees | Yes |
Processing Rates | 1.00% - 4.99% |
The 1st National Payment Solutions website provides a number of important documents, including the 1st National Payment Solutions contracts and equipment lease. 1st National offers two kinds of merchant accounts, which can last for one, two, or three-year terms. This 1st National Payment Solutions contract is an agreement through iPayment, includes an early termination fee that can range from $250-$350, an iAccess fee of $9.95-$14.95, and a variable PCI Compliance fee. The second agreement, which is through Woodforest National Bank, is an automatically renewing contract with a Liquidated Damages early termination fee. Although neither document lists the 1st National Payment Solutions rates, it is reasonable to assume that these figures may vary based on a merchant’s size, business type, and time in business. Additionally, 1st National’s standard lease agreement is non-cancellable.
In addition to its storefront payment processing services, 1st National Payment Solutions 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.
The primary factors lowering the company’s grade in this category are its use of iPayment’s services and the inclusion of a Liquidated Damages clause in its Woodforest Bank contract. This clause states that the merchant’s early termination fee will be either $250 per location or a total equal to the merchant’s average monthly fees multiplied by the remaining months in the contract, whichever is greater. This figure has the potential to be very high. Although 1st National scores points for providing these contracts for all merchants to see on its website, the actual terms therein are worthy of a “C” grade at this time and do not compare favorably to the cheapest merchant accounts.
A company representative has stated in the comment section of this 1st National Payment Solutions review that the company’s early termination fee only applies to merchants who receive free equipment upon signup and it can be waived for other merchants. In addition, the same representative stated that the company’s contract through Woodforest only charges a flat $5 monthly fee and does not include any other monthly, annual, or PCI compliance fees.
Item | Result |
---|---|
Employs Independent Resellers | Yes |
Advertises Deceptive Rates | No |
Discloses All Important Terms | Yes |
1st National Payment Solutions appears to utilize a referral program, strategic partnerships, and independent sales entities to market its services. The use of independent sales agents is usually tied to high complaint rates for a company, but we are currently able to locate only one National Payment Solutions review that describes misrepresentation of pricing. This 1st National Payment Solutions review is found in the comment section below and could simply have been a misunderstanding.
As an additional point in the company’s favor, it does not appear to engage in deceptive advertising strategies in its official materials. We will therefore assign 1st National Payment Solutions an “A” rating in this category for the time being. If you suspect that 1st National Payment Solutions is charging you undisclosed fees, however, we recommend seeking a free third-party statement audit.
Despite the fact that it is an ISO of 1st National Processing, 1st National Payment Solutions rates as a better-than-average merchant services provider. The company has a low complaint rate despite its potentially expensive contract terms, and the company’s president appears to be active in responding to the few complaints that the company generates. It should also be noted that the company’s name is spelled “1st National Payment Solutions” rather than “First National Payment Solutions.” Despite a higher-than-expected grade in this review, merchants are advised to read all contract terms carefully before signing any applications or agreements with this processor and to compare its pricing to the best-rated merchant account providers.
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Bill Hagerty
Have been with 1NPS since Dec. of 2011 and in Aug. of this year (2016) decided not to do credit cards anymore in my business. Contacted 1NPS and I did the paper work to terminate my relationship with them. In a few shorts days they debited my account $295.00. This should only had happened if I had been with them less than a year.
I have contacted them in regards to this with no results. Also sent them the original contract showing them when I signed up.
No fair and not good business practices.
I would not recommend this company to anyone needing a merchant provider.
Michael Cho
I am with 1st national solution company for more than 10 years. I am paying $26.00 a flat month fee instead of $5.00 a flat month fee Mr. Giovanni claims. I decide to use PayPa credit company. They are trying to charge me $200.00 for 6 month short of contract, which I knew nothing about. I will not introduce my friends to “1st national payment solution” anymore.
Michael DiGiovanni
Hi Philip,
I like what you are doing here. I have a similar site in the works. If you sift through my site you will see in the merchant academy section (formerly buyer beware) I have written many articles over the past 16 years addressing deceptive business practices of my competitors who have blackened the eye of the industry. I hope you locate any and all of these companies and treat them accordingly.
Also please note that every merchant that signs up with our company is aware of every single rate and fee that may apply to their account. Our motto since inception has always been Superior Service and Support along with Honesty, Integrity & Full Disclosure. Yes, I do have contracts but we are flexible hence the 1,2, and 3 year agreements. I am even empowered to waive contracts and ETFs and we do that quite often. The ETF fee is our protection against losses we may sustain due to Free Terminal & POS Placements where we give up hundreds sometimes thousands up front to board an account, much like a cell phone provider giving away an $800 I Phone. I don’t think it is very fair to penalize me with a C- for that, but I guess its your scale and it applies to everyone. The problem is most of the competition does not make their terms and conditions readily available to merchants as we do. One more thing, you note the PCI Fee and I Access Fee at I Payment / First National Processing. Please be advised through my other Vendor Woodforest we offer a flat monthly fee of $5.00 per month with no other monthly fees, no annual fees, no PCI Fees and no IRS fees. This is our primary provider.
Please see below and update your records accordingly.
I have multiple locations land the NY Address has changed. New Suite #
NEW YORK CORPORATE HEADQUARTERS
40 Underhill Blvd Ste LA1 Syosset NY 11791 Tel: 877-964-1622 Fax 231-941-4204
MICHIGAN BRANCH OFFICE est 2008
120 Boardman Ave, Traverse City MI 49684 Tel: 877-964-1622 Fax 231-941-4204
CA BRANCH OFFICE
32530 Hupa Drive, Temcula, CA 92592
Thank you. Keep up the good work
P.S. I am very interested in leads you may be generating from your site. I would pay for them and you would be assured that your are sending the merchant to a company that would give them bottom line pricing and fair treatment.
Sincerely,
Michael Di Giovanni
President
1st National Payment Solutions
http://www.1nps.com
[email protected]