Potentially Costly Terms

There is very little information available regarding the actual terms of the standard Smart Card Merchant Services contract. The company gives a detailed explanation on how their customized pricing involved 3 tiers for qualified, mid-qualified, and non-qualified rates but does not disclose any information. Merchants have not filed complaints that specifically mention transaction fees, early termination fees, PCI Compliance fees, monthly minimums, or other fees. Some merchants do express a general sense of surprise at how high their monthly costs are, but it seems that the rates and fees charged by Smart Card for its credit card processing services are not the biggest issues facing the company.

Virtual Terminal and Payment Gateway Pricing

In addition to its storefront payment processing services, Smart Card Merchant Services also dedicates a portion of its website that advertises its virtual terminal and payment gateway services. However, pricing on either of those services is not disclosed. Additional rates and fees, including gateway fees, technical support fees, batch fees, and additional transaction rates typically apply to these e-commerce services.

Beware Long-Term Equipment Leases

Smart Card’s tendency to package its merchant accounts with equipment leases through First Data Global Leasing, on the other hand, is a major problem for merchants. As one of the lowest-rated providers, First Data Global Leasing is notorious for providing long-term, non-cancellable, expensive equipment leases, and most complaints filed against Smart Card refer to the equipment lease as the primary problem. The company’s equipment lease policy in combination with accusations of incomplete sales disclosure has lowered Smart Card’s score in this section more than the terms of its merchant agreement.

Widespread Negative Reports

We are currently able to locate nearly 25 negative Smart Card Merchant Services reviews, some of which accuse the company of being a ripoff or a scam. Common complaints include improperly advertised equipment leases, undisclosed fees, misrepresented rates, unreachable customer service, and a poor work environment for the company’s employees. This complaint total is fairly high for a company that is only two years old, and it doesn’t even include a much larger number of EMV Payment Systems and Eschelon Merchant Services complaints that could potentially be connected to Smart Card staff members.

Slamming Allegations

Both Eschelon Merchant Services and EMV Payment Systems are the subjects of multiple merchant complaints describing very similar “slamming” tactics, particularly with regard to equipment leased through First Data Global Leasing and Northern Leasing Systems. We have received Smart Card Merchant Services complaints that describe this same issue, indicating that Smart Card shares those companies’ business approach.

Serious Red Flags

Moreover, many of these complaints describe severe issues such as exorbitantly expensive lease costs, outright deception by sales agents, and totally indifferent replies from sales agents and company representatives. Smart Card therefore rates poorly both in the quantity and content of its available complaints.

Smart Card Merchant Services Lawsuits

We have not found any outstanding class-action lawsuits or FTC complaints filed against Smart Card Merchant Services. Dissatisfied merchants who wish to pursue a non-litigious course of action against the company should consider reporting it to the relevant supervisory organizations.

Smart Card Merchant Services Customer Support Options

The company advertises that its customer service center is open from 7:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. PST Monday through Friday, but 24/7/365 technical support is available for all merchants. However, the company’s options and performance do not earn it a place among the top-rated payment processors for great customer service at this time.

Poor Company Responsiveness

Smart Card Merchant Services currently has an “F” rating with the Better Business Bureau and is not BBB-accredited. The company has received 11 complaints in the last 36 months. 7 of the complaints related to product or service problems, 1 related to an advertising or sales issue, 2 due to billing or collection disputes, and 1 due to a delivery issue. Smart Card Merchant Services has only responded to 1 of these complaints and has not resolved any of the remaining 10, which is the primary reason for its low rating.

What Merchants Say

In addition to the 11 complaints filed with the BBB, Smart Card Merchant Services’ profile has also received 9 informal reviews. While 1 review is positive, the remaining 7 are negative. One complainant mentions deceptive sales practices:

This is a cheating company. If I read the review of this company before I signed contract with them then I will not end up as a victim. The sales rep gave lots of misleading information. The worse part was the leasing of the credit card reader which bound me for 4 years with the total charges to almost $5,000! So DON’T SIGN ANY CONTRACT WITH THIS COMPANY ESPECIALLY FOR THE CREDIT CARD READING MACHINE LEASE! You will regret if you don’t take people’s warning about this company!!!! I would have given minus star if I am allowed to!

This complainant could benefit from understanding what fees to be on the look out for when signing up for a merchant account.

An “F” Performance

In light of the company’s complaint total and resolution ratio over the past eight months, we see no reason to alter the BBB’s rating.

Deceptive Sales Tactics

Smart Card Merchant Services utilizes a combination of telephone appointment setters and independent agents to market its services. In general, this hiring strategy can create a team of unsupervised or untrained sales agents and is commonly linked to merchant complaints. In this case, we have located a large number complaints about Smart Card Merchant Services, Eschelon Merchant Services, and EMV Payment Systems that consistently cite issues with nondisclosure or misrepresentation. In particular, many negative reviews describe aggressive telemarketing and deceptive tactics with regard to the company’s equipment leases.

Nondisclosure Complaints

Multiple merchants allege that Smart Card sales agents failed to disclose the 36- to 48-month non-cancellable leases that came with their merchant accounts or claimed that the equipment was “free.” Some complaints also describe tactics that closely resemble “slamming” scams, in which a Smart Card Merchant Services agent will call and claim to be with “Merchant Services” in order to persuade a merchant to purchase new equipment. A few complaints from the company’s employees back this up with descriptions of a high-pressure “hiring mill” environment. All of these claims are corroborated by an account mistakenly posted in the comment section below our CardSmart Merchant Services review:

Smart Card Merchant Services cold called me and said our business rating had changed and wanted to know whether I wanted to accept an upgrade to our account for better credit card processing fees.

The telesales agent made it seem like we had a relationship with them, but when I asked they said we did not. I asked them to put the upgrade offer in writing but she said she could not, but could schedule an in-person interview. We scheduled a date and time and I asked her to send email confirmation, but it never appeared. Strike 1.

On the date in question, I called the number on the website and reached someone who confirmed there was an appointment and they had my email address wrong. So obviously they don’t know much about my business, and when I said it was a cold sales call, they insisted it was not since they knew our credit rating had improved.

I told her I would be a little late for the meeting since it wasn’t confirmed. I was five minutes late – the rep was 45 minutes late. Strike 2.

During the meeting, the rep would not put anything in writing and proceeded with a number of hard sell / hard close sales gambits. He was vague about details and said I have to commit, they only review accounts once a year and I have to decide now. I told him I needed to talk to my partners and he continued to try to close the sale.

He finally wrote some things on his business card with a *not guaranteed* on it. He said he was not selling me, but rather his goal was to screen me out.

I called the next day and told him we were interested and whether he could send me the contract so we can review the terms and sign. He told me he can only meet in person. Since my partner is in another state, I told him we would be happy to do that but he would have to fly across the country. He said he can’t do that. Strike 3.

We decided the sales process and business practices are too sketchy for us to engage with them. They promise great rates, but won’t put anything in writing and keep saying “it depends”.

While we have not done business with them, they managed to waste a lot of my time and proved to be incompetent with sketchy business practices at best. At least as far as we are concerned, they are out.

It’s strange they behave so unprofessionally. We are currently paying sky-high rates for credit card processing and it appears they can save us a lot of money. But we can’t risk a core part of our business dealing with a vendor who:
1) Has deceptive sales techniques
2) Insists on meeting in person and is 45 minutes late
3) Won’t send a contract to review

Specific Sales Agent Issue

In addition to merchant complaints, we have located a news story from December 2016 that actively warns business owners about the conduct of some Smart Card Merchant Services sales reps. One rep in the story, Michael Lee, is named in numerous Smart Card complaints across the web. As of that article’s publication, he was still selling for the company, but it is unknown whether he is still an active salesman.

Supposedly Transparent Pricing

The Smart Card Merchant Services website actively promotes interchange-plus pricing, which is the most transparent pricing model available. Although there is no indication that this pricing structure is misleadingly promoted, the company’s reputation with regard to its equipment lease sales inclines us to warn merchants against taking the company’s word on this. Business owners should be sure to confirm that the rate structure they will receive is true Interchange-plus rather than a tiered model that has been misrepresented. If you suspect that Smart Card is charging you undisclosed fees, we recommend seeking an independent statement audit to spot hidden charges.