CRFA's Federal Lobbyists
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Joyce Reynolds Executive Vice President, Government Affairs T: 1-800-387-5649 ext. 4219. E: jreynolds@crfa.ca |
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Justin Taylor Vice President, Labour and Supply T: 1-800-387-5649 ext. 4214 E: jtaylor@crfa.ca |
Senate report urges credit card reform
(July 6/09) In a report released June 30, the Standing Senate Committee on Banking, Trade and Commerce unanimously supported CRFA’s calls for greater government oversight of credit card companies and called on the government for swift action in reforming Canada’s credit card system.
While it stopped short of recommending Australian-style caps on interchange fees, the report noted that “something is wrong when so many merchants, big and small and from across a variety of sectors, feel that other participants in the payment system are not adequately responding to their concerns.”
With respect to merchants, the report recommended that :
- An “oversight board” be created to establish a payment system code of conduct and make regulatory or legislative recommendations by Dec. 31, 2009
- Merchants be permitted to bargain collectively regarding terms and fees
- Merchants be allowed to charge customers an additional fee for credit card use, advise customers of lower-cost methods of payment, and refuse high-cost premium cards
- Debit card fees be charged on a flat fee basis, not a percentage fee, and that the interchange fee for debit cards be maintained at zero for three years
- Banks be prohibited from “priority routing” a debit transaction through the network of their choice.
In addition to the recommendations aimed at protecting merchants, the report encouraged the government to act quickly to implement the consumer protection measures announced by Minister Flaherty in May 2009.
The report is particularly significant because it was unanimously endorsed by both Conservative and Liberal members of the Senate Committee and will be submitted to the government for response and action. CRFA will continue to work with restaurateurs and members of Parliament over the summer months to bolster support for swift action on this file.
Additionally, the Competition Bureau continues to investigate credit card companies for possible infractions under the Competition Act. CRFA will be participating in the investigation by providing evidence of how current business practices are anti-competitive and are harming Canadian restaurants.
Related Documents:
- Transparency, Balance and Choice: Canada’s credit card and debit card systems (report of the Standing Senate Committee on Banking, Trade and Commerce), June 2009 (PDF)