Retail NZ Response To Commerce Commission Draft Surcharges Decision

Retail NZ looks forward to responding to the Commerce Commission’s draft decision on interchange fee regulation in the new year.

“Retail payments are a contentious area for retail businesses. We have called for changes in the system, to make it easier for retailers to understand and enable them to provide better customer experiences,” Retail NZ Chief Executive Carolyn Young says.

She is pleased that the Commerce Commission is looking to include commercial credit and foreign issued cards in the new pricing standards. This was a move that Retail NZ called for in our submission to the Commission’s consultation this year, saying the focus on Mastercard and Visa was too narrow and only partially addressed the issues faced by retailers and the flow-on effects for customers.

Retail NZ also supported the proposal for the Commerce Commission to set lower fee caps for the Interchange component of the payments system.

However, interchange fees account for a little over half the total cost of Merchant Service Fees (MSF) and retailers have concerns about the cost of other components. A reduction in the interchange fees alone will not address the overall costs that retailers pay via MSF. In our submission, we called for the Commission to regulate the total MSF to provide ongoing certainty for our members.

In addition, Retail NZ is welcoming the Commerce Commission’s intention to do further work on regulating surcharges next year to provide a level playing field for all retailers and consumers.

“We will be working with Retail NZ members to respond appropriately to today’s draft decision,” Ms Young says.

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