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    • University students impacted by new credit card transaction fees

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    This feature was a winning piece for Project J - a student-led initiative that provides Carleton journalism students an opportunity to submit their best work and win publication opportunities among five media outlets. It is organized by the Journalism Society of Carleton University. Putting passion and purpose together, Project J recognizes the talent of student journalists and also spreads awareness about opportunities in the media industry.

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    For university students like Matthew Cooper, the new credit card transaction fees businesses are allowed to pass onto customers will make them much more conscious about how and where they use their credit cards.

    Since October, a settlement between card providers and merchants across Canada has allowed businesses to surcharge customers up to 2.4 per cent when they use credit cards, once a notice is given. 

    But it’s still unclear which businesses will be implementing these surcharges, according to available data.

    A survey by the Canadian Federation of Independent Business showed 19 per cent of respondents planned to use these surcharges, 26 per cent would follow competitors and 40 per cent were unsure. Only 15 per cent said they would not be surcharging customers.

    “It kind of sucks,” Cooper said. “People are going to ask questions.”

    Canadians will now be paying some of the highest interchange fees in the world. Experts such as Ken Whitehurst, the executive director of the Consumers Council of Canada, say this could lead to the introduction of federal legislation. 

    “We are still watching to see whether the federal government will just let this play out or intervene,” Whitehurst said. “I think the government made threats they’ll intervene in hopes that application of these surcharges will be very limited.”

    In November, Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland said the federal government will enter into negotiations to lower these transaction fees, according to the Globe.

    In December, the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission ruled Telus can’t surcharge some customers who use credit cards to pay their bills. 

    Regardless, Whitehurst predicted only small businesses will look to use this new tool to their advantage.

    He added he’s worried consumers may consequently avoid small businesses that need to surcharge to profit, rather than major retailers and banks who will profit regardless. 

    He attributed this to a lack of clarity around regulations, financial illiteracy among the general public and people’s tendency to use credit cards for rewards. 

    “It just seems very complicated,” he said. “In most cases, it’s counter to the best interests of merchants.”

    But an Angus Reid poll suggests otherwise. The poll, shared publicly on Dec. 6, showed two out of every five Canadians would stop shopping at major retailers if they added surcharges, while only three out of every 10 would avoid small businesses that add the surcharges.

    Cooper said as a student, he mostly makes purchases from major retailers, as they’re usually cheaper. The exception is student-owned businesses such as Rooster’s, which is operated by the Carleton University Students’ Association (CUSA).

    Former CUSA president Anastasia Stoikos-Lettieri said the association and its businesses will not be passing these fees onto students and called on the federal government to reduce the fees.

    “We hope any organization that chooses to pass a surcharge onto its customers will subsequently demonstrate a price reduction,” she said.

    On campus, Carleton University was reluctant to commit one way or the other. Tara Jackson, the university’s manager of communications, said in an email any changes will be communicated in advance.

    “We are aware of the changes regarding credit card interchange fees and are monitoring how this may impact our community,” she wrote. “Should any changes be made to credit card fees on campus, this will be clearly communicated in advance by each business.”

    Under Carleton Dining Services, several large and small businesses operate on campus. This includes Starbucks and Tim Hortons, which each have more than one location at Carleton.  

    Neither business has responded to repeated requests for comment on whether they would be surcharging customers.

    The most conscious consumers will likely just use debit cards or cash to avoid surcharges, Whitehurst concluded. 

    For Cooper, that’s easier said than done. While he believes there’s an elevated level of awareness on university campuses, people his age are likely to be confused by the changes or glance over receipts and ignore the additional charges, he said.

    "I think people are generally not aware of it at all," he said. "A lot of the time, there’s a lack of education on how to use your credit card to your advantage."

    "I’ll definitely be thinking about it twice now."

    - Mark Ramzy is an Egyptian-Canadian reporter entering his third year studying journalism at Carleton University. He is the former news editor at the Charlatan, Carleton’s independent student newspaper, and his work has appeared in the National Post and The Globe and Mail.

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