Long-Term Contract

According to multiple merchant reports, the standard TRU Payment Processing merchant agreement is a multi-year agreement with an early termination fee of up to $495, a variable monthly minimum fee, and a long-term, non-cancellable month equipment lease of the Clover POS system through First Data Global Leasing. In the company’s current Truly360 incarnation, these terms may also include Google search and reputation management costs.

Beware Equipment Leases

Detailed reports of TRU’s per-transaction fees, annual fees, and PCI compliance fees are unavailable at this time. However, any contract with a $495 early termination fee and a 48-month lease through First Data is hard to recommend for merchants. The lease is an especially unfavorable deal that costs thousands of dollars over the life of the lease for equipment that can be purchased for less than $500. This possibility alone is enough to exclude TRU from our list of the cheapest merchant accounts.

Potentially Expensive Terms

As with the company’s sales and marketing practices, the number of complaints about TRU’s contract terms is relatively low. However, the content of those complaints has reduced the company’s score to a “C” at this time. If you have any information about the standard TRU Payment Processing contract, please share that information in the comment section below this review.

Low Overall Complaint Total

We are currently able to locate approximately seven negative TRU Payment Processing reviews, none of which outright accuse the company of being a scam. The most commonly cited issue is the company’s equipment lease cost, although multiple merchants also mention difficulty cancelling service and confusion about the company’s rate match guarantee. These complaints appear to mention Matthew Focht, itstru.com, TRU Processing, and TRU Payment Processing in more or less equal measure. The total number of complaints is lower than expected for a company of TRU’s time in business, but the complaints themselves often describe fees of $495 or more.

Reputation Management

Truly360 has also received a large number of positive testimonials in Google reviews and on Glassdoor. It is important to note that Truly360 specializes in reputation management and search optimization for businesses, which is a service that helps to make negative reviews less visible and positive testimonials more visible. This raises the possibility that TRU is also exerting some influence over which of its own user reviews are visible to a casual Google user. For this reason, merchants are advised to be thorough when researching the company and to look past the very first results that appear in search engines.

TRU Payment Processing Lawsuits

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

TRU Payment Processing Customer Support Options

The company’s low complaint rate has raised its score, but we have lowered our rating for the company to a “B” in this section due to the severity of some complaints. TRU Payment Processing offers live phone support to its merchants but does not qualify as a top-rated payment processor for customer service at this time.

Clean Complaint Record

TRU Payment Processing currently has an “A+” rating with the BBB and has had 0 complaints in the past 36 months. At the time of a previous review, the company had 2 complaints filed against it. Both complainants claimed that they were not aware that they were signing equipment leases at the time they signed up. TRU Payment Processing held the customers to the terms of their agreements despite this fact.

An “A” Rating for Now

TRU’s low complaint total inclines us to agree with the BBB’s rating for now, but the company’s complaint resolution responses to its previous complaints will be worth monitoring going forward. Merchants should also note that there are reasons to be skeptical of BBB ratings.

Inside Sales Team

TRU Payment Processing appears to utilize a combination of inside sales agents, referral programs, and online advertising to market its services. There is no evidence at this time that the company operates as a “hiring mill.” However, we have located a handful of TRU Payment Processing complaints that describe misrepresentation or nondisclosure by sales agents, specifically in relation to the company’s 48-month equipment leases through First Data Global Leasing.

A Detailed Sales Complaint

One of the most recent complaints filed against TRU Payment Processing was actually filed with the Better Business Bureau against the Truly360 brand. In this complaint, the merchant makes the following allegations:

Truly360 representative, ****** ********, disclosed to me a contract with Truly360 that was totally cancelable at any time for a cancellation fee of $495. And without my knowledge or consent he entered me into a lease with ***** **** [probably First Data – ed.] and Truly360 Merchant account. No contract was given to me at the time of signing. Once I received the letter from ***** ****, ON Nov 2, 2016, alerting me to a 48 month non-cancelable lease, I contacted ***** **** that same day and requested and received a copy of the contract. I also contacted Truly360 that day, and after many calls and requests, I finally received a copy of the contract from Truly360, approximately 10 days after signing. The contracts are different. The one that Truly360 showed me on the Ipad had a cancellation fee of $495. ***** **** did not. I never signed a lease with ***** **** nor did I supply my social security number or date of birth.

[…]

Truly360 represents themselves by being with ****** [probably Google – ed.] and are coming to take updated pictures for the ****** search engine. He comes in with a ****** logo on his shirt and starts to sell the ****** Growth package.

Well into the meeting he presents the merchant account and ****** machine. He states this is a free machine if we purchase the ****** package. He sells this as a package with a $199 dollars a month fee. It is at this time, with witnesses, that this conversation took place:

Me: I have no intention of getting into any contract or lease. I am still in a lease with ***** **** that ends in 2 months.

Rep: You can cancel at any time

Me: What is the cancellation fee?

Rep: I will waive it

Me: No offense but the merchant business has a lot of turnover. So tell me, if you were no longer working for this company, what would it cost me to terminate early?

Rep: $495

Me: Totally? For everything? (the ****** machine was on my desk and I made a circular motion over it).

Rep: Yes, totally

Business Partner: We can handle that

At no time did the rep disclose the ***** **** Lease. I was not given copies at the time of signing. I discovered the lease when I received the letter and immediately contacted Truly360 stating I was going to cancel the entire contract. I contacted ***** ****, stating I did not enter into a lease agreement.

Truly360’s Response

It is important to note that Truly360 categorically denied most details of this complaint in its responses. However, if the merchant’s version of events is accurate, then this would indicate that Truly360 is engaging in an increasingly common sales tactic within the credit card industry. Specifically, this tactic involves a merchant account provider strongly promoting a business service “program” that is unrelated to credit card processing, but then requiring that merchants sign a long-term equipment lease and processing agreement in order to participate in the larger “program.” This approach is usually profitable for providers because the margins on leased credit card equipment are incredibly high. In fact, here is an excerpt from a company representative’s response to the complaint cited above:

By signing a 4 year lease and combining processing we are able to eliminate ALL upfront fees with our marketing services and completely get rid of all of our fees after 4 years. With the profit we earn from the credit card processing we are able to continue to provide incredible marketing services for essentially NO cost to the business after the initial 4 years.

Some Cause for Concern

TRU’s overall number of sales complaints is low for a company that has been in business as long as TRU Payment Processing has, but the specific complaint content has lowered the company’s score to a “B” until we have more information about TRU Payment Processing’s current sales approach. If you suspect that TRU Payment Processing is charging you undisclosed fees, we recommend seeking a third-party statement audit to find and eliminate hidden fees.