Amazon announces they will not accept UK-issued Visa credit cards from January 2022

najaB · 17 Nov 2021

This is being discussed in a couple of threads, so I thought I'd start this one to bring everything together.

Amazon will stop accepting Visa credit cards in the UK from 19 January, the online retail giant has told customers.

It said the move was due to high credit card transaction fees but said Visa debit cards would still be accepted.

Visa said it was "very disappointed that Amazon is threatening to restrict consumer choice in the future".

Amazon said: "The cost of accepting card payments continues to be an obstacle for businesses striving to provide the best prices for customers."

Amazon to stop accepting Visa credit cards in UK

The online giant says high Visa fees mean it won't process credit card transactions from 19 January.

www.bbc.co.uk

To repeat what I said in one of the other threads:

najaB said:
Sm5 said:

I suspect some where in Visa today, a sales negotiator just lost his job.

Click to expand...

To be replaced by a new negotiator and Amazon announcing in a couple of weeks that they will, in fact, continue to accept Visa-branded credit cards.

RailUK Forums

Cloud Strife · 17 Nov 2021

Is this related to the UK removing the EU-mandated limits on credit card fees, I wonder?

Dent · 17 Nov 2021

Cloud Strife said:
Is this related to the UK removing the EU-mandated limits on credit card fees, I wonder?

Given that they said it was due to high credit card transaction fees, is there really any doubt about that?

duncanp · 17 Nov 2021

I think this is a negotiating tactic on the part of Amazon, which is designed to try and make VISA change their minds on increasing

It depends whether affected customers in the UK are prepared to switch to an alternative card just so that they can continue shopping at Amazon.

If not many people do so, and start shopping elsewhere, then you may find that Amazon has a change of heart.

However, if a lot of people do start moving to alternative cards, that you may find that it is VISA that has the change of heart.

RT4038 · 17 Nov 2021

I got that e-mail from Amazon this morning, asking me to click on all sorts of links to change my card details. Assumed it was a scam and deleted it!

westv · 17 Nov 2021

I haven't used a credit card for years.

davews · 17 Nov 2021

For quite a while I have tended to use my credit card (and PayPal linked to it) for online transactions and my debit card for day to day off line, just to keep them separate if there is any fraud. Not used the 'credit' side of it for years, always paid off each month.

swt_passenger · 17 Nov 2021

westv said:
I haven't used a credit card for years.

Have you got one? I effectively keep mine for emergencies only, but they have previously proposed closing the account if I didn’t use it. So I now buy something with it about once a year and pay it straight off…

westv · 17 Nov 2021

swt_passenger said:
Have you got one? I effectively keep mine for emergencies only, but they have previously proposed closing the account if I didn’t use it. So I now buy something with it about once a year and pay it straight off…

I did have one but, because I never used it, it expired and I never renewed it.

swt_passenger · 17 Nov 2021

westv said:
I did have one but, because I never used it, it expired and I never renewed it.

I was in two minds I must admit. One thought I had was what if I wanted another one a few years later, and giving it up affected credit scores etc…

87 027 · 17 Nov 2021

RT4038 said:
I got that e-mail from Amazon this morning, asking me to click on all sorts of links to change my card details. Assumed it was a scam and deleted it!

Agree it's bad form for emails like that to ask you to click links to update your account. It would have been better to say 'please login to your account to update your details'

YorkshireBear · 17 Nov 2021

westv said:
I did have one but, because I never used it, it expired and I never renewed it.

I have had one for 7 years, use it for almost all my expenditure but never paid a penny of interest on it.

Find it easier to separate card spend from taking cash out.

SteveM70 · 17 Nov 2021

YorkshireBear said:
I have had one for 7 years, use it for almost all my expenditure but never paid a penny of interest on it.

Find it easier to separate card spend from taking cash out.

Same here. I’ve had credit cards since I was about 20, occasionally moving to whoever offers the best cashback / loyalty points / free Arsenal shirt for my sons birthday.

I now have three. John Lewis MasterCard for everyday stuff, Barclaycard Visa for work stuff, and a Halifax Clarity card for overseas because it doesn’t charge any additional currency fees

I’ve never paid a penny interest on any of them

YorkshireBear · 17 Nov 2021

SteveM70 said:
Same here. I’ve had credit cards since I was about 20, occasionally moving to whoever offers the best cashback / loyalty points / free Arsenal shirt for my sons birthday.

I now have three. John Lewis MasterCard for everyday stuff, Barclaycard Visa for work stuff, and a Halifax Clarity card for overseas because it doesn’t charge any additional currency fees

I’ve never paid a penny interest on any of them

Perfect. Must confess I need to have a look as mine no longer has the cashback benefits it once did.

Although it is visa credit I don't use Amazon so won't impact me. Doubt it will last long, two companies so big they need each other, just feels like postulating on both sides.

Cloud Strife · 17 Nov 2021

So, from checking elsewhere, it's exactly as I thought. Visa jacked up the credit card transaction fees after the UK changed/lifted the EU-mandated cap on transaction fees.

Amazon will simply be posturing to get Visa to return them to the previous level, nothing more.

Busaholic · 17 Nov 2021

Amazon will already pay the lowest crerdadit c

Cloud Strife said:
Amazon will simply be posturing to get Visa to return them to the previous level, nothing more.

The posture most governments and suppliers themselves adopt when dealing with Amazon is to be craven supplicants, with the honourable part exception of the French government. I have no doubt that Visa will concede something to Amazon, even if they deny the full claim. Isn't monopoly capitalism marvellous?

johntea · 18 Nov 2021

Banks are also ditching Visa, both my NatWest and First Direct have changed from Visa debit cards to Mastercard debit cards recently so not particulary an Amazon exclusive thing

But yes you would presume they will come to some sort of agreement as I'm sure the potential transaction fee savings will be wiped out by the sudden reduction in orders by Visa holders as it isn't quite as easy for a customer to change their credit card!

bspahh · 18 Nov 2021

johntea said:
Banks are also ditching Visa, both my NatWest and First Direct have changed from Visa debit cards to Mastercard debit cards recently so not particulary an Amazon exclusive thing

But yes you would presume they will come to some sort of agreement as I'm sure the potential transaction fee savings will be wiped out by the sudden reduction in orders by Visa holders as it isn't quite as easy for a customer to change their credit card!

Visa increased their interchange fees for UK credit cards in March. Mastercard did it in January.

Visa to hike interchange fees for UK customers in post-Brexit move

The UK’s biggest debit card provider will notify clients of the proposed increase in fees later this week, Sky News learns.

news.sky.com

I don't think it will be easy for a UK customer to switch to a credit card with 0.3% interchange fees, without relocating to the EU.

Furryanimal · 18 Nov 2021

So I registered my Visa debit card,got my free £20 and what I bought is arriving today

nlogax · 18 Nov 2021

johntea said:
Banks are also ditching Visa, both my NatWest and First Direct have changed from Visa debit cards to Mastercard debit cards recently so not particulary an Amazon exclusive thing

First Direct certainly ditched Visa and switched to MC for their debit cards but they still only offer Visa credit cards. Wondering if this stance will change with announcements such as this one from Amazon.

Bungle73 · 18 Nov 2021

Busaholic said:
Amazon will already pay the lowest crerdadit c

The posture most governments and suppliers themselves adopt when dealing with Amazon is to be craven supplicants, with the honourable part exception of the French government. I have no doubt that Visa will concede something to Amazon, even if they deny the full claim. Isn't monopoly capitalism marvellous?

Amazon have the size and clout to effect change on this. Smaller retailers don't.

SteveM70 · 18 Nov 2021

Bungle73 said:
Amazon have the size and clout to effect change on this. Smaller retailers don't.

Indeed. And if the card providers want to maintain their increased revenues it risks them increasing charges to other retailers even more

Baxenden Bank · 18 Nov 2021

RT4038 said:
I got that e-mail from Amazon this morning, asking me to click on all sorts of links to change my card details. Assumed it was a scam and deleted it!

Al I received was an email with the subject:

Visa credit cards will not be accepted, starting 19 Jan, 2022

and in the main body

Mr (my name)

Nothing else - no links, no explanation, no waffly guff about how sorry they are etc.

I automatically assumed they had been hacked until I noticed the story elsewhere. Is that the level of communication skills nowadays? Grunt, ug.

Baxenden Bank · 17 Jan 2022

Today (17 January), Amazon announce Visa will be accepted after all.

"We are working closely with Visa on a potential solution that will enable customers to continue using their Visa credit cards on Amazon.cu.uk"

Congratulations to all those who took advantage of the 'up to £20' to register an alternative card offer. Wonder how much that cost Amazon?

Busaholic · 17 Jan 2022

Baxenden Bank said:
Today (17 January), Amazon announce Visa will be accepted after all.

Congratulations to all those who took advantage of the 'up to £20' to register an alternative card offer. Wonder how much that cost Amazon?

Congratulations to Visa too for not capitulating to the monopolist's threats, though doubtless they'll have to concede something to save Bezos's ugly face.

nlogax · 17 Jan 2022

Baxenden Bank said:
Wonder how much that cost Amazon?

Whatever it was they could easily afford it.

oldman · 17 Jan 2022

I try to avoid Amazon but I don't think Visa are a philanthropic organisation. Two companies with dominant positions in their markets are negotiating a 'potential' deal, that's all.

ainsworth74 · 17 Jan 2022

oldman said:
Two companies with dominant positions in their markets are negotiating a 'potential' deal, that's all.

Quite. This was just the consumer getting caught in the crossfire of two companies that make billions in profits. Not billions in revenue. But profits. Why the consumer should be being penalised (or risk being penalised) because two companies that make vast sums of money couldn't agree a deal is beyond me but then I'm not a billionaire and perhaps that's one of many reasons why!

robbob700 · 17 Jan 2022

I don't have a lot of time for Visa saying "When consumer choice is limited, nobody wins".
When Visa sponsored the London 2012 Olympics, they were "Proud to accept only Visa" for payments - they didn't even allow non visa debit cards.

davetheguard · 17 Jan 2022

Busaholic said:
Congratulations to Visa too for not capitulating to the monopolist's threats, though doubtless they'll have to concede something to save Bezos's ugly face.

Do we know that Visa have won? It could be that Visa have lost and have reduced or removed the increase they were making in their charges.

I wonder if we'll ever find out what has really happened?

Amazon announces they will not accept UK-issued Visa credit cards from January 2022

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