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Sekure Payment Experts Exposed: Fees, Contracts, Risks, and Legal Issues

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Maintained Since: April 12, 2013

We take our role in providing guidance and education regarding the card payment industry very seriously. At our own expense, we have vigorously defended our right to continue expose unethical and predatory practices in the industry, successfully defeating every attempt to silence us. However, fending off frivolous lawsuits is costly. To sustain these efforts, one of the ways we generate revenue is through affiliate partnerships with ethical providers. This means that some of our outgoing links connect business owners to trustworthy, low-cost payment processors, which is what most of our readers seek. We see this revenue channel as a win-win-win for everyone involved. Business owners find good processors, processors get good clients, and we are able to continue to provide a valuable service to the small business community. We also recommend and link to many services that do not compensate us. Our priority is to guide you to the best solutions for your needs, regardless of potential revenue. If you have questions, please feel free to contact us.

All mentions of rate and fee costs are estimations based on publicly available information and client feedback. Actual costs may vary based on a variety of factors unique to your business.

Sekure Payment Experts
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Pros

Fast approvals
Diverse payment solutions
No setup fees

Cons

Negative online reviews
Deceptive marketing
Misleading contract complaints
Potential cancellation fees
Aggressive telemarketing

Overview

In this review of Sekure Payment Experts, we’ll look at the operations of this merchant account provider linked to North American Bancard. We’ll cover their services, including payment processing for small businesses, customizable POS systems, virtual terminal services, e-commerce solutions, and fraud protection.

However, there are some concerns to address, such as allegations of aggressive telemarketing, deceptive marketing practices, and high cancellation fees. These issues have led to mixed customer and industry feedback. We’ll examine their contract terms and fees, with a focus on the controversial Liquidated Damages clause.

We’ll also consider employee feedback and the company’s marketing tactics, providing insights into their operational ethics. Lastly, we’ll discuss the legal battles they’ve faced, including a class-action lawsuit, to give a complete view of what to expect when working with Sekure Payment Experts.

Listen to this episode about Sekure Payment Experts

About Sekure Payment Experts

Screen Capture of The Sekure Merchant Solutions Homepage
The Sekure Merchant Solutions Homepage

There is a significant amount of evidence online indicating that Sekure Payment Experts has operated under other business names, including “Sekure Merchant Solutions” and “First Choice Payment Solutions.” Additionally, the company appears to primarily act as a reseller of North American Bancard — one of the worst-rated merchant account providers we have investigated. Sekure Payment Experts advertises that is also markets PayAnywhere as a POS solution, further supporting that it has ties with North American Bancard.

Products & Merchant Services

Payment Processing

Sekure Payment Experts provides payment processing services for all major debit and credit cards, focusing on small businesses. Their offerings include traditional swipe and dip terminals, as well as e-commerce and mobile payment processing solutions.

Point of Sale (POS) Systems

Sekure Payment Experts offers POS systems designed to help businesses manage sales, inventory, and payment processing. These systems include features like inventory management, employee management, and customer management. They can also be customized to meet the specific needs of different businesses.

Virtual Terminal

Sekure Payment Experts provides a virtual terminal that allows businesses to accept payments from any location. Accessible through any web-enabled device, this terminal supports on-the-go payment processing and includes features like recurring payments and electronic invoicing.

E-commerce Solutions

Sekure Payment Experts offers e-commerce solutions to help businesses sell products and services online. The platform integrates with various e-commerce platforms, including Shopify, WooCommerce, and Magento. It also includes a virtual terminal for accepting payments over the phone or through email.

Customer Reviews & Sentiment

Understanding Sekure Payment Experts Customer Reviews

We’ve uncovered over 80 negative reviews about Sekure Payment Experts across various online platforms. Several reviewers accuse the company of deceptive practices. The main concerns include:

  • Aggressive telemarketing tactics
    • Example: A customer complained that Sekure Payment Experts called their office 11 times in 5 days, despite requests to stop. Another reported multiple calls per day even after asking to be removed from call lists.
  • Misleading sales information
    • Example: One customer reported being told they were getting a “special” low rate for restaurants, only to discover upon billing that the rates were actually very high.
  • High cancellation fees
    • Example: A business owner reported being charged high cancellation fees immediately after trying to cancel their account, despite being told they could cancel at any time without penalty.
  • Unexpected rate hikes
    • Example: Several customers reported that their rates increased significantly after the initial agreement, with no prior notice or explanation.
  • Difficulty canceling services
    • Example: One customer reported that the company refused to provide an RMA to return their credit card machine and continued to charge fees even after the account was supposedly canceled.

Authenticity of Positive Reviews

While Sekure Payment Experts has some positive online reviews, their legitimacy has been questioned. Some claim that competitors may post fake negative reviews due to industry competition. However, no concrete evidence supports this claim. It’s worth noting that:

  • There are reports that the company has offered statement credits for positive Google Reviews, requiring customers to include the ‘agent name’ and ‘name of your business’ in the review.
  • Some positive reviews appear to be from employees or affiliates of the company, rather than genuine customers.
  • The disparity between the content of positive and negative reviews is significant, with positive reviews often lacking specific details about the service.

Industry Scores & User Ratings

Online Ratings Summary
PaymentPop1.6
BBB Rating4.13
Trustpilot4.5
Google Maps4.3
Yelp2
Average Rating3.7

Possible Rating Manipulation

Sekure Payment Experts appears to be actively manipulating its ratings on user review forums that do not verify the authenticity of the reviews and websites that accept payment for allowing artificially skewed positive ratings. This is evidenced by an abnormally high number of published testimonials, which is unusual for companies in the credit card processing industry.

Additionally, many of the testimonials carry the tone of marketing language, not that of real customers. For the reviews that may be from genuine users, they often name individual support agents, which suggests that they offer customers incentives for leaving positive reviews, such as credits towards monthly fees. Such activities were made illegal by the Federal Trade Commission in 2024 due to the false picture they create on a company’s reputation. The ratings discussed on the websites below should be carefully considered for authenticity.

PaymentPop Rating for Sekure Payment Experts

Negative Feedback

They are liars and held me to a 3-year contract they said I signed but it turns out this information was not in the contract that I signed, this information was in the fine lines of the terms and conditions they said I clicked on and accepted. Not sure how is legal to hold a business hostage for 3 years of fees for unused services (over 3K in fees for services not provided) due to a legality that should not be legal. Terms and conditions should not be used to scam customers and our government is doing nothing to protect us, the consumers.

Positive Feedback

I’ve been happy with them. No issues. Not sure what this page is about. Been in business for 12 years and this is a great company so far.. (1.5 years so far )

Sekure Payment Experts’ BBB Rating

There are countless online reviews stating a variety of grievances about Sekure Payment Experts and its former business names.

Since 9/4/24, this company, Sekure Payment Experts, has been harassing our company with unsolicited phone calls. They have contacted 11 times in the last 5 days, calling 2-3 times per day. We are not interested in doing business with them and would like the phone calls to stop.

Sekure Payment Experts called our office to try and get us to switch our payment system over to them. The sales lady started to get pushy asking for reports, numbers etc. and I told her that we were not interested and hung up. She proceeded to call three more times trying to get me back on the phone, AFTER I had told her never to call this number again.

Misleading Sales Information

I signed up with Sekure payment experts last summer for my business, [business name redacted], to provide credit card services- I was told I was getting a “special” low rate for restaurants and that it could be cancelled at any time. However, to my surprise when I was billed I realized I had been scammed- my rates were very high!

Difficulty Canceling Services and High Fees

So I cancelled my account and they immediately tried to charge me with high cancellations fees. They also will not give me an RMA so that I can return my credit card machine.

Sekure says I should have read the fine print on our contract :/ They did give me an address I could send the cc machine back to. However they still won’t close my account and are still trying to charge me fees they told me didn’t exist when I opened the account.

Questionable Review Practices

And had the audacity to ask us to leave a good Google Review for a $20 statement credit. Checking their Google reviews, it seems lots of businesses leave positive reviews and it’s obvious they’re being paid along for the statement credit, since you need to include the ‘agent name’ and ‘name of your business’ in the review for them to credit you.

Trustpilot Rating for Sekure Payment Experts

Sekure Payment Experts has a 4.5 out of 5 star rating based on 165 user reviews on Trustpilot.

Positive Feedback

Clear and concise directions. Easy to implement and use equipment and virtual terminal. Very knowledgeable and friendly staff that walk through each step in detail. Competitive rates.

Negative Feedback

Definitely would not refer this company. They are impossible to deal with and are relentless in trying to sell you 3rd party products. I told them 100 times we weren’t interested and still called again with another person. What’s ultimately problematic is that they’re just brokers for merchant services so you don’t actually work with the bank directly.

Google Maps Rating for Sekure Payment Experts

Sekure Payment Experts has a 4.3 out of 5 star rating based on 1,128 user reviews on Google Maps.

Positive Feedback

I switched credit card processors thanks to the help of Sekure. I was using the native processor in the CRM my small business uses but Sekure helped me change to a different system for processing and bank.

Negative Feedback

This company can not be trusted!!! they will say anything to get your business, mislead you into saying yes, very sketchy I wish I had read the reviews, they are a scam they will ignore you completely and you cant’ even chat with anyone it’s a robot how convenient 2 days trying to speak to someone on the phone it’s like they know you are calling and choose to ignore you, even after canceling they still shipped the equipment, not even working with them yet and they still refuse to cancel what kind of company does that.

Yelp Rating for Sekure Payment Experts

Sekure Payment Experts has a 2 out of 5 star rating based on 66 user reviews on Yelp.

Positive Feedback

Great company to work with! Good rates and EXCELLENT Customer Service. I highly recommend. Staff is excited to have Tap & Pay on their iPhones.

Negative Feedback

Would not recommend this for any small business. I joined with a promise of lower fees than my previous company. The processing fees ended up being higher and kept getting hit with other fees. To cancel the account I also needed to pay a hefty fee. Customer service was good but I want a company that is more up front with all the fees when I sign up.
It was significantly more than my previous provider and I got hammered the last few months with fees that the other company never had. I will not be back and will not recommend

Processing Rates & Fees

Long-Term Contract With Cancellation Fees

Sekure Payment Experts typically requires a three-year contract with North American Bancard, including potential for:

Note that specific details, such as PCI Compliance fees and monthly minimum fees, vary depending on business size, type, and tenure. Sekure Payment Experts primarily partners with North American Bancard for merchant accounts.

Beware Liquidated Damages

Sekure Payment Experts’ contracts contain Liquidated Damages clauses, which can lead to substantial early cancellation fees. These fees are calculated based on:

  • Fixed amounts or average monthly processing costs
  • Remaining contract months

Potentially exceeding $900, these fees are considered excessive. Sekure Payment Experts’ contract terms are rated average to below-average, suggesting better deals may be available with other merchant account providers.

Lawsuits & Legal History

Sekure Merchant Solutions Telemarketing Class Action Settlement

In August 2018, the company (operating under First Choice Payment Solutions) reached a $6.25 million settlement in a class-action lawsuit. While specific details about the nature of the lawsuit are not readily available, the settlement amount suggests it was a significant legal action against the company.

The lawsuit likely involved allegations related to telemarketing practices, given the company’s history of aggressive telemarketing tactics.

While the exact terms of the settlement are not provided, class-action lawsuits involving telemarketing often address violations of regulations such as the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA). These settlements typically result in compensation for affected individuals who received unwanted calls or messages.

Lawsuits Related to Former Business Names

James Schaffer v. First Choice Payment Solutions G.P. case:

Case Details

  • Case Number: 8:18-cv-01981
  • Court: California Central District Court
  • Judge: David O. Carter
  • Filed: November 5, 2018
  • Terminated: August 7, 2020
  • Nature of Suit: Other Statutory Actions (890)
  • Cause: Violation of Telephone Consumer Protection Act

Parties

  • Plaintiffs: James Schaffer, Terry Fabricant
  • Defendant: First Choice Payment Solutions G.P.

Settlement Details

  • Settlement Amount: $1,600,000
  • Attorney Fees: $400,000
  • Costs: $61,544.72
  • Incentive Awards: $5,000 each to James Schaffer and Terry Fabricant
  • Claims Administration Costs: $210,948.42

Key Points

This was a class action lawsuit alleging violations of the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA). The case was resolved through a settlement agreement, which received final approval from Judge David O. Carter on August 7, 2020. The settlement required the defendant to pay $1.6 million into a settlement fund to compensate class members, cover administrative costs, and pay attorney fees and incentive awards to the named plaintiffs.

The court found the settlement to be fair and reasonable, approving the requested attorney fees, costs, and incentive payments. The case was then terminated following the final approval order and judgment.

Barbara Chadwick et al. v. First Choice Payment Solutions G.P.

  • Case Title: Barbara Chadwick et al v. First Choice Payment Solutions G.P.
  • Case Number: 1:19-cv-00590-RBJ
  • Date Filed: February 27, 2019
  • Plaintiffs: Barbara Chadwick, Frederick Marshall, Cassandra Macarthur, Howard Potter, and James Dill
  • Defendant: First Choice Payment Solutions G.P., d/b/a Sekure Merchant Solutions

Nature of the Case

This is a class action lawsuit alleging violations of the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA). The plaintiffs claim that the defendant, Sekure Merchant Solutions, made unsolicited telemarketing calls to their cellular telephone numbers using an automatic telephone dialing system (ATDS) or artificial or prerecorded voice, without their prior express written consent.

Key Allegations

  • The defendant allegedly called the plaintiffs’ cellular phones without their consent.
  • Some of the plaintiffs’ numbers were allegedly on the National Do Not Call Registry.
  • The calls were made for telemarketing purposes, specifically to sell merchant processing services.
  • The plaintiffs seek statutory damages under the TCPA, which provides for $500 per violation and up to $1,500 for willful or knowing violations.

Class Action

The plaintiffs seek to represent two classes: 1. Those who received calls from Sekure to their cellular phones using an ATDS or artificial/prerecorded voice without prior express consent. 2. Those whose numbers were on the National Do Not Call Registry and received more than one call from Sekure within a 12-month period.

Covalt et al v. First Choice Payment Solutions G.P., d/b/a Sekure Merchant Solutions

  • There is no publicly available information on the specifics of this case. What is available states that the case is still pending.

Employee Reviews & Sales Practices

Aggressive Telemarketing

Sekure Payment Experts relies heavily on telemarketing. Most complaints about the company cite aggressive, repeated sales calls from representatives, often ignoring clients’ requests to stop.

There’s More To The Story

Sekure Payment Experts’ website presents itself as a business advocate, offering free initial statement analyses. However, evidence suggests Sekure Payment Experts is actually a reseller of North American Bancard’s merchant services, rather than an independent rate review service.

Key Concerns

  • No disclosure of North American Bancard affiliation on the website
  • Clients receive services from Global Payments and North American Bancard without clear explanation
  • North American Bancard is a reseller of Global Payments

Expect Only One Option

It appears that Sekure Payment Experts’ primary goal is to sell North American Bancard contracts. Business owners should be aware of this when receiving calls from the company. Consider exploring our list of top-rated merchant account providers.

Sekure Payment Experts Competitors

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Bottom Line

Sekure Payment Experts is a below-average credit card processing provider due to its deceptive business practices and costly contract terms. Evidence indicates the company operates as a North American Bancard reseller, contrary to its presentation as a business advocacy or referral agency.

Concerns for Business Owners

  • Misleading self-presentation
  • Expensive contract terms
  • Increasing online complaints
  • Better alternatives available

To ensure optimal value for processing needs, potential clients may want to compare Sekure Payment Experts’ terms with top-rated merchant account providers

Read Actual User Reviews

See User ReviewsWrite a Review
All user reviews have been moved to our partner, PaymentPop.com

Contact Sekure Payment Experts

Contact & Customer Support
Co-founderFrank Dalphond
Co-founderMisha Artzy
PresidentJeff Ramaglia
Toll-Free Customer Service(866) 710-7382
Customer Service Fax(866) 976-3406
Sales Inquiries(866) 710-7382
Sales Fax(888) 228-5578
Additional Support ChannelsLive Chat and Online Contact Form
Websitesekuremerchants.com