Card Machine
Fees, PCI, terminals and chargebacks — plain-English guides for UK SMEs. Compare readers when you’re ready.
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IC++ vs Blended Rates and Terminal Rental
How interchange-plus and blended MDR differ, what terminal rental really costs, and minimums to watch on UK merchant statements.
Card Surcharging Rules in the UK
Consumer vs commercial cards, dual pricing, and what you can legally pass on — plus reputational risk if you get it wrong.
Amex, Commercial and International Card Fees
Why some cards clear at higher MDR, how to model true cost of sale, and when to accept or discourage certain schemes.
Contract Length, Exit Fees and Auto-Renewals
Typical tie-ins for countertop and integrated terminals, early termination charges, and notice windows before you re-sign.
Dynamic Currency Conversion (DCC) at the Till
How DCC works for inbound tourists, who earns the markup, and how to stay on the right side of disclosure rules.
Countertop vs Portable vs Mobile Card Readers
Which form factor fits fixed tills, pay-at-table, markets and pop-ups — connectivity, battery, and receipt printing trade-offs.
Integrated Card Machines and EPOS
Semi-integrated vs fully integrated payments, reconciliation benefits, and what your EPOS vendor needs from the acquirer.
Choosing a Terminal When Turnover Is Modest
Avoiding over-engineered bundles, pay-as-you-go vs contract, and when a softPOS trial is enough to validate demand.
Contactless Limits, Apple Pay and Google Pay
CVM limits, high-value contactless, wallet tokenisation, and how staff should handle “card not accepted” at busy tills.
PCI-DSS for Small Businesses Taking Cards
SAQ types in plain English, what P2PE changes, record-keeping after a Self-Assessment Questionnaire, and common audit gaps.
Strong Customer Authentication (SCA) in Person
Chip-and-PIN, contactless velocity limits, and when a payment falls back — reducing unattended declines at the lunch rush.
Refunds, Chargebacks and Winning Evidence
Reason codes, time limits, compelling evidence for “goods not received”, and how to train staff to reduce friendly fraud.
Settlement Times and Payouts Explained
T+1 vs rolling reserve, public holidays, split settlements across outlets, and cash-flow planning around acquirer cut-off times.
When Card Payments Fail — Practical Troubleshooting
First checks for connectivity, key injection errors, “do not honour”, and how to escalate without losing the queue.
Receipts, VAT and Card Reporting for SMEs
Aligning Z-reads with acquirer deposits, partial exemptions, and export evidence when HMRC asks how you recorded card income.
Backup When Broadband Fails — Still Taking Payments
4G fallbacks, offline mode limits, queue management, and why failover broadband belongs in the same playbook as card terminals.
Online vs In-Person Acquiring — One Provider or Two
Gateway + merchant ID sprawl, unified reporting, PCI scope for MOTO, and when separate acquirers still make sense.
Card Machines for Hospitality — Pubs, Cafés, Restaurants
Pay-at-table, pre-authorisation for tabs, tips and troncs, and peak-time resilience when every second counts.
Retail Queue-Busting and Pay at Counter
Handhelds vs fixed lanes, refunds in high-volume shops, and loss-prevention habits staff can follow without slowing sales.
Mobile Trades and Pop-Up Card Payments
Festivals, builders, mobile beauty — battery life, data SIMs, tipping, and proof of delivery to reduce disputes.