North American Bancard Scam

My research into North American Bancard scams raised a number of red flags, and at this time my current rating is 1 star. I discovered numerous complaints of a clear intention to mislead individuals that there was no contract or contact length with the use of terms such as "month to month" in various pieces of literature, leading Me to believe that the company is actively trying to trick potential customers into believing that there is no long term contract. Their "free" credit card terminal program also caught me as disingenuous and played a part in my rating. My advice is that you proceed very cautiously with signing with North American Bancard if you are doing so under the presumption that there is no long term contract, or you are joining their free terminal program.

Yes, 3 year minimum

Yes, $295 plus remaining monthly fees

A common complaint that came up in my research of North American Bancard was the failure of sales representatives to provide any real disclosure of what the contract actual states. While the contract is very clear, the purpose of this site is too identify cases such as this and bring them to light. The North American Bancard contract stipulates that the merchant is responsible for a $295 early termination fee, in addition to paying all remaining monthly fees. The standard minimum for monthly fees is $35 ($25 monthly minimum, $10 statement fee); which means a merchant who cancels their account 12 months into their contract could be charged upwards of $1,135. While the program guide mentions being month to month, the contract is very clear that merchants are signing up for a 3 year contract with a minimum of a $295 cancellation fee.

North American Bancard is currently is rated A+ by the BBB. This was quite a surprise as with 295 complaints over the past 36 months, I was not expecting them to have the highest rating possible. Upon further review it appears as though with the volume of accounts they process this number represents a fairly small percentage of accounts. Additionally it looks as though many of the complaints deal with contract disputes which, as the merchant signed the contract regardless as to the means by which they were convinced to sign, they are ultimately responsible for living up to the terms stated in the agreement. While North American Bancard may be in the right that the merchant signed the contract, I take a different approach and am trying to ascertain whether merchant's are being treated correctly.

Free Terminal Program:

This is one of the more egregious items I've come across during our research into the industry. North American Bancard has what they describe as a "free terminal program", contrary to what I assumed and what seems to be an industry standard - when joining the program the merchant is actual not getting a free terminal to own, but rather the terminal is being licensed to the merchant. The merchant is responsible for returning the "free terminal" within 10 days of closing or canceling their account, or will be charged what is listed as the equipment "retail value"; unfortunately the listed retail value on these "free terminals" is significantly higher than the prices I have seen listed on other websites.

Misquoted Rates:

A large number of the complaints I've found online speak to individuals finding that the rates they were told they were signing up for on the phone did not match the rates found on their contract. While the response from North American Bancard is correct, the merchant is ultimately responsible for honoring the agreement and the rates stated in the agreement. However this once again is why this site exists, I recommend any merchant considering working with North American Bancard make sure they walk through their contract page by page with their sales representative, leaving no section, rate or area unexamined and explained.

Rising Rates:

In addition to the issue of having been told rates that were different than the rates seen in their contract many merchants were upset to note that their contract (specifically Section 17) allows NAB to increase their rates at their discretion. While all merchant contracts allow merchant account providers to increase their rates, when coupled with the 3 year contract and exorbitant cancellation costs you have a recipe for disaster.