Rectangle Health Contract Length
The standard Rectangle Health contract closely resembles the standard Retriever Medical/Dental Payments contract. According to a company representative, the standard Retriever Medical/Dental Payments contract is a multi-year agreement through National Processing Company with a conditional termination fee, no annual fees, no PCI compliance fees, and no monthly minimum fees. Some complaints about Rectangle Health mention a monthly fee of approximately $30, which might actually refer to a monthly equipment lease payment through a third-party provider. It seems that some Rectangle Health agents bundle long-term equipment leases with their contracts, so merchants should be cautious of unfavorable or excessively long lease terms. Additionally, the Rectangle Health website states that the company does not differentiate rates for keyed-in transactions, ensuring that merchants won’t face higher transaction rates when a customer pays without their card being present.
The Rectangle Health Guarantee
Rectangle Health currently promotes an early termination fee guarantee on its site, which mirrors a similar guarantee from its time as Retriever Medical/Dental. According to a company representative, the Retriever Medical/Dental Payments early termination fee guarantee comes with specific terms:
OUR GUARANTEE:
We have no early termination fee. Our processing agreement may be cancelled at any time, upon written notice with NO CANCELLATION FEE TO_______________________(Client).
ADDED SERVICES GOOD FAITH GUARANTEE:
As a good faith courtesy, if you have a cancellation fee for your existing processing agreement, we will pay it for you or assist you to avoid one. We will also provide you with any necessary custom installations and staff training seminars and special account set up services.
IF YOU ACCEPT THESE ADDED SERVICES, WE HOLD A REASONABLE EXPECTATION THAT YOU WILL HONOR THE TERMS OF YOUR PROCESSING AGREEMENT ACCORDING TO THE FOLLOWING PROVISIONS. (Failure to follow the provisions below may result in the client’s obligation to pay the cost of these added services when applicable):
If Retriever Medical Dental Payments cannot beat any valid written offer or if our program should fail to reduce accounts receivable balances and our processing services may be cancelled at any time and at no cost.
In essence, if merchants do not receive custom installation or training from Rectangle Health and do not request Rectangle Health to cover their previous cancellation fees with a different processor, they can exit their contracts at no cost. However, if Rectangle Health covers a merchant’s termination fee with their previous processor or provides custom installation, training, or account setup services, the merchant will need to reimburse Rectangle Health for those costs. Nevertheless, the merchant can still terminate the contract without penalty if they allow a Rectangle Health representative to conduct a rate review and attempt to beat a competitor’s valid written offer.
Rectangle Health Guarantee Disputes
This policy has led to disputes between merchants and Retriever Medical/Dental regarding the appropriate application of the early termination fee. Several merchants claim they were not informed of the company’s early termination fee or the rate match guarantee at the time of signing. Upon canceling their service with Retriever, they were charged the full $700 early termination fee. Retriever maintains that this fee was correctly charged because the merchants did not first undergo a rate review. Some merchants also complain about the inconvenience of scheduling an in-person rate review with a Retriever representative and obtaining a valid third-party offer that Retriever cannot beat. There is no indication that Rectangle Health enforces this policy differently.
Applicable in Perpetuity
While this guarantee could be a reasonable means to recoup acquisition costs on expensive accounts if it did not apply indefinitely, its current wording imposes extensive obligations on merchants long after the initial processing agreement. For example, under the current language, a merchant could potentially cancel with Rectangle Health after 15 years and still be liable to reimburse Rectangle Health for significant setup costs or early termination fees—long after Rectangle Health likely recouped the account acquisition cost.
An Imperfect Policy
On one hand, this new policy represents an improvement over other termination policies as some merchants can cancel without facing a $700 penalty or the need for a rate review. On the other hand, some merchants can only avoid an undefined, uncapped cancellation penalty by obtaining a competing quote that Rectangle Health cannot match. Since Retriever can lower its prices to retain the account, this policy essentially serves as a retention ETF. We typically advise merchants to seek processors with more flexible contract terms than this.
