Auction houses and credit cards

[Birdbats]

Maybe it's because I haven't bid (or at least won) with a major auction house in a while, but is it normal for them to not accept credit cards as payment? I was looking at Legendary's payment terms and was surprised to see they do not accept credit cards.

We accept personal checks... We also accept cashier’s checks, certified checks, money orders or wire transfers... No Credit Cards Accepted For Payment.

Leland's site doesn't say they accept credit cards, but it doesn't specifically exclude them. I couldn't find anything about payment terms on REA's site. Grey Flannel also will not take credit cards.

Am I just out of the loop... or does it seem strange that a major auction house doesn't accept credit cards as payment? I realize they have to pay the credit companies a percentage, but it seems many potential bidders might be excluded if they can't charge something and pay in installments.

[karamaxjoe]

Most of the old places like Mastro, Lelands and GF have never accepted credit cards. I'm guessing they never wanted to deal with people disputing charges when they felt the auction item was not the real deal.

[Jake51]

I think this practice has been around for quite some time - at least 3-4 years for sure.

One theroy I've heard on this is that if you buy something with a credit card and you discover the transaction to be fraudulent for some reason, you can work with your card company to recoup your money. So, no credit card payment allowed by the auction house and they are able avoid this issue.

Thanks,

Tom

[Jake51]

whoops..sorry for the dupe. Posted at the same time you did Mike.

Tom

[shoremen44]

for them to process credit card payments costs money... its most likely purely a dollars and cents thing

[dcgreg25]

I think it is definitely a combination of both the expense of accepting the cards as well as the potential for a seller to dispute a charge. A buyer's leverage is significantly decreased if they can not dispute a charge. I dont necessarily blame the auction houses for the policy but I believe it serves both purposes. That being said, I do think people would bid more aggressively if they could pay via credit card.

[skinsfan0521]

I'm sure it's got mostly to do with the fact that you can dispute credit card charges. If they were accepting credit cards and selling ONLY legitimate merchandise (which they try to do) it wouldn't be a problem. The problem comes up when somebody isn't happy with their purchase and they can dispute it with the credit card company.

I've disputed many Paypal charges (because I got scammed) through my credit cards and got my money back from my CC every time. Paypal will find in your favor, but if there aren't any funds in the person's account, they can't do anything for you. That's why I ONLY pay w/credit card when going through Paypal. I find that the CC company will most often side w/the buyer rather than the seller. I'm not sure who's pocket it comes out of in the end, but I've never had a dispute denied through a CC.

I'm sure these auction houses don't want to be bothered with people disputing charges (even if the item is a legit item).

Just my .02

-Brian

[otismalibu]

It's funny if an auction house is getting 20% on both ends, but is too cheap to allow for CC purchases.

Like was stated earlier, that's probably not the reason.

Goes hand in hand with the No Returns policy.

[BULBUS]

I agree that its the fact that credit card purchases can be disputed. If they accepted credit cards, they would get more bids, offsetting the credit card fees.

-Chris

[rj_lucas]

I suspect auction houses refuse payment by credit card because they are upstanding and reputable companies who discourage the notion of purchasing items on credit that a person cannot truly afford.

<end of sarcasm>

Rick
rickjlucas@gmail.com