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(800) 530-2444 A High-Risk Payment Processing Specialist
Instabill is a merchant account provider based in Portsmouth, New Hampshire, that specializes in online payments for domestic and offshore low to high-risk merchants. Launched in 2003, Instabill appears to operate outside of the U.S. as ECS World LTD. The company provides its services to merchants selling adult entertainment, nutraceuticals, online gambling, and timeshares, among other industries that are typically considered high-risk.
Instabill Payment Processing
Instabill processes all major debit and credit cards for high-risk businesses. Their services include EMV card readers and swipers, POS solutions, mobile payments, ACH processing, and access to e-commerce solutions including virtual terminals and payment gateways.
Instabill Banking Location and Ownership
The company is headquartered in the U.S. at 875 Greenland Road, Suite B9, Portsmouth, New Hampshire 03801 and in Malta at 19 Giovanni Curmi Street, Lija, Malta. Given its ability to offer offshore merchant accounts, Instabill is likely partnered with numerous acquiring banks. Jason Field is listed as the founder and CEO of Instabill.
Instabill Review Table of Contents
- Costs & Contract: Instabill offers variable contract terms depending on each merchant’s business type and processing history.
- Complaints & Service: Instabill has received more than 20 public complaints.
- BBB Rating: Instabill has an “A+” rating with the Better Business Bureau and has received 0 complaints and 0 reviews in the past 3 years.
- Sales & Marketing: Instabill does not appear to hire independent sales agents and has received a low number of complaints about its sales practices.
Should You Trust Instabill?
Lawsuits, Reviews & Complaints
Complaint Summary
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Total Online Complaints
25+
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Live Customer Support
Yes
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Most Common Complaint
Fund Holds
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Low Complaint Total
We are currently able to locate approximately 25 Instabill complaints, many of which accuse the company of being a scam or a ripoff. In many of these cases, merchants report losses of multiple thousands of dollars. While this would usually cause the company’s rating to be severely lowered, it is important to note that most of these complaints appear to have been posted by high-risk merchants who Instabill representatives claim were not actually delivering services to their customers. Although it is difficult to know which party is being honest in each case, Instabill’s willingness to deal with high-risk industries predisposes it to receiving some complaints like these.
In general, Instabill’s rebuttals appear to be professional in tone and well-supported, so we aren’t inclined to fault the company for protecting itself from fraud. Merchants are advised to inquire about Instabill’s fraud protection measures and to be forthright about their business types to ensure that their service isn’t terminated after payments have already been processed.
Instabill Lawsuits and Fines
We have not found any outstanding class-action lawsuits or FTC complaints filed against Instabill. Dissatisfied merchants who wish to pursue a non-litigious course of action against the company should consider reporting it to the relevant supervisory organizations.
Instabill Customer Service Options
The only slightly alarming thing we have found is that multiple complaints mention difficulty contacting an Instabill representative to resolve issues in a timely fashion. Instabill offers a customer support form, a customer service email address, and customer service phone support during regular business hours. However, it does not rank among our top-rated payment processors for great customer service.
We have located multiple Instabill customer service phone numbers:
(800) 318-2713 – Toll-Free Customer Support
(800) 530-2444 – Alternate Toll-Free Customer Support
44 (0) 203 948 8219 – UK Customer Support
Instabill also offers a customer support email address at [email protected]
Is the BBB Rating for Instabill Accurate?
Better Business Bureau Profile
BBB Summary
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Product & Service Complaints
0
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Billing & Collection Complaints
0
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Advertising & Sales Complaints
0
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Guarantee & Warranty Complaints
0
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Delivery Complaints
0
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Clean Complaint Record
Instabill is not an accredited business with the Better Business Bureau. As of this review, the company holds an “A+” rating with the BBB and has had 0 complaints filed against it in the last 36 months.
What Merchants Say
Instabill also received 0 informal reviews on its BBB profile. A previous review describes poor customer service:
Instabill is complete ridiculous provider. First of all, they barely reply emails, I had to send it twice to get reply from sales. And later they rudely declined with reason because of “no meaningful presence” of my business. What the heck “presence” is for Web Hosting? So they advertise that they support all kind of semi-legal stuff like casinos and other high-risk stuff, but not a web hosting. One star, would give zero if I could..
Merchants who wish to avoid this outcome should familiarize themselves with reasons their applications could be denied.
An “A” Performance
Given the company’s clean complaint record, we agree with the BBB’s rating.
How Expensive is Instabill Service?
Rates, Fees, and Contract Terms
Cost Summary
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Swiped Rate
1.00% - 4.99%+
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Keyed-in Rate
1.00% - 4.99%+
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Virtual Terminal Rate
1.00% - 4.99%+
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Payment Gateway Fee
Undisclosed
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Early Termination Fee
Undisclosed
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PCI Compliance Fee
Undisclosed
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Equipment Lease Terms
Undisclosed
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Variable Contract Terms
Because Instabill specializes in high-risk and offshore merchant accounts, the company’s rates and fees are not likely to compare favorably to those of traditional merchant account providers. However, this is a product of Instabill’s willingness to provide processing for riskier business types rather than the result of an inappropriate markup.
Generally speaking, Instabill’s contract terms appear to vary greatly depending on a merchant’s business type, size, time in business, and risk for fraudulent activity. Its terms will likely feature tiered pricing and may incorporate early termination fees or PCI Compliance fees. The company’s gateway services providing secure payment processing for high-risk e-commerce is likely to be attached to additional fees. Gateway, account maintenance, and setup fees are often attached to this service, though Instabill does not readily disclose theirs.
Virtual Terminal and Payment Gateway Pricing
In addition to its storefront payment processing services, Instabill also dedicates a portion of its website to advertising its 3D secure virtual terminal and payment gateway. 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.
Instabill Fund-Hold Policy
Most Instabill complaints seem to stem from the company’s fraud prevention policies. Many merchants report cancellation of their merchant accounts or withholding of funds, both of which are common fraud prevention tactics among high-risk processors. In most of these cases, Instabill has responded by detailing its fraud prevention policies, which generally consist of randomly contacting customers and obtaining information about whether a merchant has supplied a particular service in an appropriate amount of time. If merchants do not appear to be rendering their services within a reasonable amount of time (or at all), Instabill reserves the right to terminate their merchant accounts. This is understandably frustrating for merchants who have already processed payments through Instabill at the time of cancellation, but it’s also a sensible fraud prevention policy on Instabill’s part. Given the company’s track record and relatively low complaint total, we have awarded it an “A” in this category.
We also encourage merchants to check out our list of the providers of the best merchant accounts.
Does Instabill Use Deceptive Marketing?
Advertising & Sales Strategy
Key Points
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Employs Independent Resellers
No
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Advertises Deceptive Rates
No
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Discloses All Important Terms
No
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Inside/Outside Sales Team
Instabill appears to utilize a combination of its in-house sales team, its website, and independent referrers to market its services. There is no indication at this time that the company partners with outbound independent resellers, and we are currently able to locate only a few negative Instabill reviews that accuse the company’s sales team of misrepresentation or nondisclosure.
This compares favorably to our list of best credit card processors.
Instabill Rate Quotes
At the time of an earlier review, a sidebar on the Instabill website promoted rates “as low as 2.2%,” which is a slightly misleading quote that likely only applies to “Qualified” rates. This quote is no longer listed, though, and the company’s website now urges merchants to get in touch for a custom rate quote based on their processing history, risk factors, and business type. If you suspect that Instabill has misled you about your pricing, you can double-check their bill with a third-party statement audit.
Does Instabill Deserve Your Business?
Review Summary & Our Thoughts
A Solid Option for Many High-Risk Businesses
Instabill rates as a reliable merchant services provider according to our rating system. Because the company offers high-risk and offshore merchant accounts, it has drawn some complaints from merchants who found their services canceled or funds withheld. In most of these cases, however, Instabill appears to have been proactively protecting itself from fraud. The company is a viable option for merchants who are unable to obtain credit card processing through traditional providers, but merchants are always encouraged to compare its pricing to top-rated high-risk processors.
Michael
After reading recommendations for high risk processing, specifically for kratom, Instabill was on the top of the list with an A rating. We were skeptical because we’ve yet to find a processing company that hasn’t robbed us in some way or another, but this experience has been the worst by far. We contacted them and right away they were eager to help offering a solution through a “partnering” company. I don’t know if they just collect a sucker/finders fee for directing people to scammers or if they are directly involved with the scam itself. Needless to say we got our first deposit on time and as promised but that was the last deposit we ever received. We jumped through hoops and got the run around for over a month. With almost 70k processed that we never received a dime for it nearly bankrupted our company, not to mention completely destroyed any faith or trust we had in humanity. Instabill claims no liability because our contract is with their “partner” not them.
This post will help: Best Merchant Accounts for Kratom
– Phillip
Rebekha
Paul Nash the CEO of Spinqast said instabill stole all of the representatives of Spinqasts money. He said they would not release the funds and the funds that we all paid to become representatives. Thousands of dollars gone *poof* who has it??? Where did it go??? According to Paul Instabill has it and won’t release it to him.
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Are you with Instabill? Learn how to resolve this complaint.
Jason Gillespie
I am very surprised to see that you are recommending instabill as a reliable merchant. I can provide multiple documentation to prove that they are running a scam. I hope you were not paid by instabill to review them.
CPO
Hi Jason,
According to all the available information, we found no evidence to support a claim such as yours. Please feel free to leave your evidence in the comment section of this review and we’ll take it into consideration.
A.Haddad
I absolutely agree that Instabill is a scam. we had a pharmacy website and we were tired of not getting paid the right amount and tired of seeing new charges.our balance was about $12000 and they started giving us conditions for releasing the money.we felt that we met all conditions but they came up with new and different ones. all in all they took the $12000 and we had no way of getting them back. I had an attack on their website and got it down for two days and that was my money’s worth. i swear to God if I come face to face with anyone of them,man or woman,I would break their Mother Fracking knecks.
Hawkeye
I totally agree with you. According to Instabill my money (which was in a reserve) was being held just in case of chargebacks. Well I never received any chargebacks and I never received the $5000 that was being held. I am sure it went into their bottom line as it did not go into mine. Instabill is a scam and will rip you off.
D.Cohen
I am also in a high risk business and got screwed over did you find a merchant who satisfied your needs? if so can you tell me which one?
From The Editor
This Post Might Help: Best High Risk Merchant Accounts
Chris
I found Instabill to be both competent and professional. Our merchant facilities were up and running within the quoted timeframe and Terri Donato was very helpful.
Mark
We have been processing with Instabill for approximately seven years. They are excellent. Our experience with them has been that they provide an excellent product and act with the highest standard of integrity and customer service. We would recommend them to anybody who needs high spec processing at a competitive price.
Phillip CPO
Hi Mark,
In order to authenticate your testimonial and lend it more credence, please reply to this comment with your business name and location.
Steve Sivers
I would just like to say that i found Instabill very helpful in a situaton where our Company needed to to sort out merchant facilities quickly for what would be classed as a High Risk account they were both quick and helpful . Considering we are also running on different timezones with us in Uk and them in the US the correspondance and responses to get the matter sorted out in the quickest possible time was to be commended.
We got our facilities up and running within a 10 day timeframe and Terri Donnato was most helpful and i would recommend from my experience Instabill solutions to anyone looking at merchant facilities that may be outside the normal parameters .