| Category Breakdown | |
|---|---|
| Sales & Marketing |  |
| Costs & Contract |  |
| Complaints & Service |  |
| BBB Rating |  |
Overall Rating
Overview
BankCard USA Logo
BankCard USA Merchant Services (bankcardusa.com) is a merchant account provider that specializes in credit card processing and electronic payment services. The company is a reseller of First Data that shares past ties with Maverick Bankcard, a relationship that is covered in our Maverick Bankcard review. According to a BankCard USA representative, these two companies no longer have any relationship besides being located on different floors of the same building, and each operates independently of the other.
BankCard USA claims to provide processing for 400-1000 new merchants per month and to have serviced over 100,000 merchants since its creation. The company began operating in 1997 and is located at 28720 Roadside Drive Suite 299, Agoura Hills, California 91301. BankCard USA Merchant Services is a registered ISO/MSP of Wells Fargo Bank, N.A., Walnut Creek, California. The president of BankCard USA is Shawn Skelton and the vice president is Scott Hardy.
BankCard USA Products and Services:
- Debit and credit card processing
- Wireless payment acceptance
- Check conversion
- Gift and loyalty programs
- POS equipment
- Merchant cash advance
- E-commerce solutions
Industries served:
- Retail
- Mobile
- E-commerce
Sales & Marketing | C+
| Key Points – Sales & Marketing | |
|---|---|
| Uses independent resellers? | Yes |
| Promotes deceptive rate quotes? | Yes |
| Discloses all important terms? | No |
According to BankCard USA reviews found on this site and elsewhere, the company appears to hire independent sales agents to market its services. The use of independent sales agents or resellers is a common practice within the industry that often results in elevated complaint rates among merchants. In the case of BankCard USA, numerous publicly available complaints report aggressive in-person sales tactics and nondisclosure or misrepresentation of fees at the point of signing.
The company’s home page quotes “the lowest rates in the industry at 0.23%.” Although the website never elaborates on this quote, it is most likely the “Qualified” rate for swiped debit transactions. The website makes no mention of the “Mid-Qualified” and “Non-Qualified” rates that merchants are likely to pay for the majority of their transactions. We consider this type of rate quoting to be deceptive, since the 0.23% figure shown is much lower than the effective rate for almost all merchants.
BankCard USA Marketing Example
[Related: Get rate quotes from “A” rated merchant account providers right now]
Costs & Contract | B-
| Key Points – Costs & Contract Terms | |
|---|---|
| Swiped rate: | Variable |
| Keyed-in rate: | Variable |
| Termination fee: | $99 |
| PCI compliance fee: | Variable |
| Equipment lease: | Variable |
Many public complaints about BankCard USA describe a standard agreement of three years with an early termination fee ranging from $99 to $295. Other reported fees include monthly minimum fees ranging from $10 to $25 (likely dependent on business size and type) and multiple PCI compliance fees each year, which may exceed $200 in total. According to one rebuttal offered by a company representative, BankCard USA reserves the right to place funds in risk assessment for up to 180 days. This provision appears to have caused great inconvenience for a number of high-risk merchants that the company has serviced.
A company representative has informed us that BankCard USA no longer charges a termination fee on all accounts. The company only charges merchants a $99 termination fee if they have received free equipment upon account activation, and it waives this fee if the equipment is returned or if the merchant remains with the company for over a year. This is preferable to a long-term contract with a built-in termination fee, but it appears to be a fairly recent change for the company. BankCard USA also appears to allow its independent agents to set their own lease terms and rates, so the specific terms of the standard BankCard USA contract may vary depending on the agent servicing the account as well as the merchant’s business type, size, and time in business.
Complaints & Service | C
| Key Points – Complaints & Service | |
|---|---|
| Total complaints: | 45+ |
| Live customer support? | Yes |
| Most common complaint: | Hidden fees |
On this website and other consumer protection websites, we were able to locate over 45 complaints about BankCard USA from the last three years, many of which accused BankCard USA of being a scam or ripoff. Merchant complaints generally cited undisclosed fees, unauthorized debiting, and difficulty reaching customer service representatives. A significant number of complainants expressed frustration with the company’s policy of placing holds on suspiciously large transaction amounts. This is a common policy designed to protect merchant account providers from high-risk transactions. While it isn’t especially unethical to withhold funds in this manner, it appears that BankCard USA does a poor job of communicating its policies to high-risk merchants both before and during service. BankCard USA does not appear to list a dedicated support number on its website.
[Related: Get matched with a provider with “A” rated customer service]
BBB Report | C-*
| Key Points – BBB Report | |
|---|---|
| Product/service: | 29 |
| Billing/collection: | 27 |
| Advertising/sales: | 17 |
| Guarantee/warranty: | 2 |
| Delivery: | 0 |
The Better Business Bureau has received 75 complaints regarding BankCard USA Merchant Services within the past three years and is awarding BankCard USA an “A-” rating. Of the complaints, 29 were related to the product or service, 27 had to do with billing and collection, 17 were due to advertising or sales issues, and two were related to guarantee or warranty issues. A total of 45 have been resolved to the merchants’ satisfaction, while the BBB believes the company made a good faith effort on 29 despite the merchants’ ultimate dissatisfaction. The BBB cites six “serious” complaints against the company as the primary factor lowering its grade. In light of these figures, we have adjusted the BBB’s rating to a “C-.”
Bottom Line
BankCard USA Review
Rated out of 5 Stars
Reviewed by Phillip Parker
Reviewed on 2015-01-22BankCard USA rates as an average merchant account provider according to our rating standards. The company has a moderate complaint rate for its apparent size, and merchants consistently report dissatisfaction with the company’s contract terms, sales tactics, and customer service. The company can improve its overall rating by lowering its complaint volume and revising its sales strategies. It is worth noting that BankCard USA could potentially be confused with another business named Bancard USA. These entities are unrelated.
This review was originally published on 5/17/12 and was last updated on 1/22/15.
* Denotes CPO-adjusted BBB score
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Worse prepossessing company ever, They tell you all nice talk when they sign you up and they give you low rate but they hit you with falls charges, Hidden charges and when you call there customer service no one care and they all refer you to Cory, Cory never answer the phone never return calls,
Be careful before you sign up with them..DO NOT LOCK YOUR SELF TO A LONG TERM CONTRACT.
In March 17, 2014 my credit card terminal stopped to work. I complained about it and send a new set of terminal on 19th. Now I am waiting for a returning ticket or postal level with recipient address. Today I gave a call and trying to ask with the associate where and when you are sending the UPS to pick up the bad terminal?
The associate answered me very rudely. He said he has already send 4 times now I have to send it by my self other wise I will be charged 300.00 dollars. I trying that person to send the shipping label to my next address but he denied and said he can’t change the address. It is very rude and unlawful also.
This company is not trustworthy to get assistance when a customer have a trouble.
I am trying to find out some other service provider and breakup the business soon with this service provider.
I signed up with Bankcard USA for my new small business and it turned a nightmare regarding all the fee they charge. By the time you hire them as you credit card processor the seems to be friendly and diligent on the phone but when they get your business they are the worst: in customer services, they are rude specially that guy (Corey), not mentioning that I start to paying $45 for their service charge and a couple month later they charge me $75 with no reason. This company is a scam… They will no tell you when you signed up, that you are committed with 3 years contract but, I found out at the hard way. In short if you google it over 70 bad reviews cannot be a coincidence. This people are stealing other’s people money left and right. Hopefully somebody and some agency punish them or at least put them out service.
I signed up for Bankcard USA Merchant account . I called them up to closed the account after a days my account has been activated, it has never been working by the way, because the credit card processor is not compatible with my website.
One of rep send my a closing account form and did mentioned that $295.00 will be deduct from my account and it will be release back into my account in the couple days. Basically, that is for the terminal fees you supposed to pay after your account has been activated for 1 year. She replied she never says that. I was shocked for a bit to her response as a rep working at the bank.
I called them back again one of the rep replied that she has to request the refund back into my account so now I am waiting.
Again the terminal fees of $295.00 is paying after your account has been activated for 1 year. In my case is about 1-3 days during those days I was trying to set up the credit card processor so I can accept a credit cards on my website, but I was unable to do, so I have to canceled l, but they turn around and charge $295.00
Be aware and stay way from “BankCard USA Merchant”!!!!!! I swear!!!!!!!
Yes, this happened to me too. They use your routing number and withdraw the money. There’s no invoice or letter informing you of the same. In fact their customer service people swear that there will be no penalties for any early termination.
I think this is very wrong and there has to be a change in law. I’m a small business owner too and I don’t charge for a service that I don’t provide neither do I penalize my clients for not continuing to do business with me. There should be some legislation passed so that these sort of companies are held accountable and not allowed to get away with this kind of fraud.
I will never ever use this company again and will not advise anyone to do business with them either.
Despite the fact that we canceled our account over 8 months ago and even returned all of the equipment over 4 months ago, we continually receive bills from Bank Card USA. Our emails go unanswered and it seemingly is impossible to get a hold of these people over the phone. Last time i got a hold of one of the employees, I was treated in an unprofessional manner and the gentleman I was speaking to was very rude.
This company is a scam and it is taking several months to simply cancel my account.
Avoid this company like the black plague.
BankcardUSA intentionally masks actual costs for services rendered using don’t ask don’t tell policies. They turn a OTHERWISE 30 minutes due diligence effort into a 4 minute signup. ThEy further complicate their merchant agreements with deceptive, partial, truths, and separated application forms to formal agreement IN POST SIGNATORY conversion techniques.
For example: if you are an internet based business, their form does not stipulate in plain English what your processing rates will be. Rather, they hide THESE VARIABLE rates by omitting them on the application forms or place them within muddied heading definitions to be debated later by you with them.
Their customer support and technical support department consists of 2 qualified people and a hand full of telephone call routing clerks.
Competitively compare carefully before you sign with them and understand what it is they require of you during processing periods.
Few, if any, merchants ever qualify for next business day deposits due to the rating and/or risk place on each transaction. If you have perfect credit, low processing amounts per batch and batch the same day, you might receive a next day deposit, but with security amounts withheld. OF COURSE THE NEXT DAY deposit possibilities are only valid on certain types or low risk categories of actual transactions made as well.
Separately, PCI security compliance alone can cost a merchant $240 (OR MORE) PER YEAR additional ! It varies based upon the type of merchant processing you are implementing
You will pay MORE to BACKCARDUSA in aggregate fees, be treated disrespectfully when asking for assistance and be denied rationale resolution to concerning costs and operational issues to reasonable satisfaction.