by: Bob Hett

Let's face it, many businesses cringe when they think of dealing
with banks when they are looking to set up merchant credit card
accounts. The truth is that in order to be in business in this day
and age as a merchant, you must be prepared to accept and process
credit cards. Most especially if you do business over the Internet.
If you are not prepared to offer a full array of credit card
acceptance options, I'm afraid you will soon be out of business. The
downside to accepting credit cards is that the merchant is at risk
for not only the amount that has been charged, but a charge back fee
as well.

The banks will take the disputed charge along with a chargeback fee
directly from the merchants account and if the merchant does not
have sufficient funds that have already cleared from paying their
own bills, they will be hit with yet another charge which is known
as an overdraft charge. It can become a vicious cycle. There are now
more than a few banks that recognize that these charge backs are not
always the fault of the merchant, and that indeed, most merchants
are honest with their credit card dealings. I regret having to say
that there is so much credit card fraud out there today, and because
the merchant is always liable, you must take active steps to protect
yourself and your business.

First of all, you must be careful to verify to the very best of your
ability that the name, address and cvv number verification are all
in good order. The business owner, or merchant, must be careful to
verify the IP address of each and every transaction to make sure
that it is within the approximate location of the cardholder. A red
flag should go up if a person who lives in Des Moines, Iowa is
suddenly making a charge in Boca Raton, Florida. This is your
livelihood so the exercise of due diligence and caution are always
of paramount importance.

Do not fall into the habit of becoming apathetic because as quickly
as money is credited to your merchant account it can be taken away
due to the charge backs that we discussed earlier. Now there are
organizations who are working to try to change the banking and
processing rules and regulations so that businesses that are both
small and large will have some more protection against credit card
fraud.

The time to begin protecting yourself and your business is right
now. You need only pick up the newspaper, or read a news report, to
know that the risk is very real and always present. Reports state
that there are over 40 million credit cards in the hands of thieves
and criminals who have no compunction about using these credit cards
for any nefarious activities that they can dream up. That is why I
have written this article. It is most certainly not my intention to
scare anyone. I simply want to remind you of the dangers and risks
associated with processing credit cards for your business.

About the author:
Morgan Hamilton offers expert advice and great tips regarding all
aspects concerning Credit Cards.
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