Our CallFirst hotline has received calls from members about ‘over the telephone’ credit card transactions for what appears to be seasonal produce (e.g. turkeys, cheese etc).
Each member has followed the procedure required by their credit card machine provider for ‘cardholder not present’ transactions and the transactions have been authorised.
Subsequently, however, members have been contacted by the credit provider to say that the cards used were stolen and that the member’s account will not be credited.
The credit cards in question have all been of Australian origin.
In a situation like this, a credit card company is entitled to refuse to credit the seller’s account provided they are satisfied the cards are stolen. This means that anyone affected can end up without the produce and the payment.It must therefore be stressed that caution must be aired when taking payment for an order where the cardholder is not present and a chip and PIN procedure is not used.
Members must assess the situation. Is the customer regular or known? How much is involved and what is the transaction for? Can an alternative method of payment be used?
For more information contact? NFU CallFirst on 0870 8458458.