Absolutely. Our program is available in all 50 states. Listed below are several legal rulings, opinions, as well as Card Brand Network positions on this program:
Durbin Amendment
United States Federal Law, 15 USC § 169o-2
(2) LIMITATION ON RESTRICTIONS ON OFFERING DISCOUNTS FOR USE OF A FORM OF PAYMENT —
(A) IN GENERAL
A payment card network shall not, directly or through any agent, processor, or licensed member of the network, by contract, requirement, condition, penalty, or otherwise, inhibit the ability of any person to provide a discount or in- kind incentive for payment by the use of cash, checks, debit cards, or credit cards to the extent that—
(i) in the case of a discount or in kind incentive for payment by the use of debit cards, the discount or in-kind incentive does not differentiate on the basis of the issuer or the payment card network;
(ii) in the case of a discount or in-kind incentive for payment by the use of credit cards, the discount or in-kind incentive does not differentiate on the basis of the issuer or the payment card network;
(iii) to the extent required by Federal law and applicable State law, such discount or in- kind incentive is offered to all prospective buyers and disclosed clearly and conspicuously.
(B) LAWFUL DISCOUNTS
For purposes of this paragraph, the network may not penalize any person for the providing of a discount that is in compliance with Federal law and applicable State law.
Considerations on the Durbin Amendment
- Visa, MasterCard, Discover, and American Express are payment card networks.
(A) above prohibits Payment Card Networks from influencing a merchant’s ability to provide an in-kind incentive - (i) and (iii) above
KastenBerry CashFlow does not differentiate between any card or network. The device is not programmed to treat debit differently from credit or American Express differently from Discover, etc. - (iii) above
The in-kind incentive offered by KastenBerry’s CashFlow program is offered to all customers and does not discriminate. Signage is available and required for all participating merchants to post in location.
Card Brand Network Guidelines
- MasterCard Rules Section 5.11.2
A Merchant must not directly or indirectly require any Cardholder to pay a surcharge or any part of any Merchant discount or any contemporaneous finance charge in connection with a Transaction. A Merchant may provide a discount to its customers for cash payments.
- Visa Operating Rules 1.5.4.12
A Merchant may request or encourage a Cardholder to use a means of payment other than a Visa Card or a Visa Card of a different product type… by methods that include, but are not limited to… offering the consumer an immediate discount from the Merchant’s list, stated, or standard price, a rebate, a free or discounted product or service, or any other incentive or benefit… - American Express OptBlue Merchant Policy Guide Section 3.2
You may offer discounts or in-kind incentives from your regular prices for payments in cash. - Discover Merchant Operating Regulation 2.5
New terms permit you to offer discounts at the point-of-sale as provided in the Dodd- Frank Act. You may offer differential discounts depending on the method of payment (e.g., credit, debit, cash or check), but such discounts may not differentiate based on issuer or payment network.”