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Debit card fees refer to the fees which is charged when one makes purchases with his debit card. Every financial institution charges a processing fees made with the help of a debit card. This charge is called debit card fees.
When one uses a debit card for making purchases, he is asked if he would like his transaction to be treated as credit or a debit transaction. One is required to know why the merchant asks this.
The kind of transaction one selects determines the debit card fees. Using the debit card and opting for a debit transaction makes it an online transaction and opting for a credit type of transaction makes it an offline transaction.
When an offline transaction is opted for, the debit card fees imposed is 2% of the total purchases made. This debit card fees may vary from bank to bank issuing the debit card. This debit card fees will be borne by the retailer. Adding up 2% debit card fees each time amounts to a hefty sum for the retailer.
This debit card fees is taken by the bank which issues the debit card to the
card holder. In case of online debit transaction the debit card fees imposed is very meager.
The retailers and the merchants usually prefer offline debit transaction as they have to pay very little debit card fees. So that people choose the offline debit transaction the retailers and the merchants give several incentives. They also include such schemes like giving a pass for entering a contest or winning a cash prize etc.,.
In order to compensate for the debit card fees they include it as service tax or in the price of the products.
Many banks issuing the debit card charge for accessing the PIN. The debit card fees may be totally unknown to a customer till the time he receives his statement and finds out.
Many banks may not disclose the debit card fees and other hidden costs involved in the debit card transaction.
Efforts are on to make these debit card fees transparent to the customers at the time of issuing the debit card to avoid unnecessary hassles on the customer's part.
For further information on debit card fees, one may visit banking.about.com, bankrate.com, azcentral.com.
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