When we opened a business last September, a "salesperson" came to our business and offered us a credit card processing plan through EVO. The salesperson said that she had a lot of small accounts in our area including gas stations and C-Stores, etc. I specifically asked about the fees, which were $31.75 per month for the machine lease and the percentage of processing fees. I specifically asked if there were any other charges, or hidden fees, and she stated emphatically that there were no other fees to worry about. Because we assumed we would be an ongoing business, it seemed ok to sign the lease for 4 years.
Well, our business closed this June and I contacted the company regarding taking back the machine, which, of course, they will not do because it is a "NONCANCELLABLE CONTRACT". I can pay off the remainder of the lease and return the machine, or keep the machine and still pay off the contract, or find someone else to assume the lease. LSI will not help to find a company to assume the lease "it's not their job" according to one of the collection agents that called me.
In addition to continuing to debit my checking account for the lease fees, they also charged me a $5.00 statement fee every month (not disclosed to me by the salesperson, even though I had specifically asked about other fees) and $25.00 minimum processing fees, even though there were no transactions processed for several months prior to our closing.
I have contacted the original salesperson for assistance in finding a company to assume my lease but her response was "oh, well the economy is really bad and I'm not getting clients like I used to." Haven't heard a word from her since.in order to stop them from continuing to take funds from my account, I closed it and the collection calls started immediately.
Now, because I am sending the money each month rather than letting them debit my account, the are continuing to charge me a $5.00 statement fee because "it's in the contract". I enquired about paying the lease fee one month in advance to avoid the statement fee but that is not good enough. I either have to let them directly debit my account, or receive a statement each month and be billed the $5.00 fee. Absolutely nothing about this company or their leases are in the favor of the person leasing the equipment.
After leasing the equipment, I found credit card processing terminals on EBAY for sale that were very inexpensive. My suggestion to anyone starting a new business or beginning to accept credit card payments is to take your time, search for a terminal you can purchase outright, and just contract for a processor. I have had very good luck with Huntington Bank and their fees were very reasonable. Check with the BBB before you decide to do business with any processors. It might be a pain to do the research, but you will save a lot of money in the long run.
And, by the way, even though I "contracted" with EVO for processing, I then had to deal not only with EVO and their fees and statement fees, but also LSI and their fees and statement fees. What sounds like $31.75 a month turns out to be more than $100 a month. And, by the time this is all said and done with, it is going to cost me over $4,000 for a machine I don't use - unless I can find someone to take over the lease.
0 comments