On line banking for bookings

Up, down, could be better? How to get more bookings is our number one obsession. Talk shop here.
la vache!
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Post by la vache! »

I take 98% of payment by credit or debit card via Payboxmail (cheaper for me than Paypal). I certainly don't charge the guests, as a business it is up to me to find the cheapest way(for me) and the easiest way (for guests) to pay.
A question to all of you who add 3% or whatever for your guests who want to pay by Paypal. When you by something online and pay with Paypal are you happy to pay 3% extra on top of the advertised cost? I'd book with HelenB, but would look elsewhere if asked to pay extra by an owner.
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greenbarn
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Post by greenbarn »

LV, I don't charge for CC payments, so you can book with me as well! :wink:
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Post by Guest »

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Last edited by Guest on Thu Jul 16, 2015 10:41 pm, edited 1 time in total.
la vache!
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Post by la vache! »

greenbarn wrote:LV, I don't charge for CC payments, so you can book with me as well! Wink
I'd love to GB. One day, hopefully!
7 Aspire wrote:Would you 'happily' absorb the costs of 4.9% +20p from an Australian?
No, but as a business you can negotiate better rates than that if you try with other online payment service providers. I pay 0,25% for all European transactions (including UK) and 1% for international payments. I have some fixed annual costs as well but it is certainly much cheaper than Paypal overall.
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Last edited by Guest on Thu Jul 16, 2015 10:41 pm, edited 1 time in total.
brightmike
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Post by brightmike »

I was planning to charge a 3.5% surcharge for PP. However once I stated to use HL with their massive customer commission I decided it was a good marketing statement to say "no commission". Since HL also charge me 3.5% the cost is the same to me. To encourage BACS payments I offer a 2% discount so both sides share the PP commission saving. This seems to work well.

What is the advantage of taking credit cards directly over using PP?
Our property website can be found by looking at our profile.
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greenbarn
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Post by greenbarn »

brightmike wrote:
What is the advantage of taking credit cards directly over using PP?
Paypal have a bad history of imposing chargebacks at the drop of a hat which can leave you badly out of pocket, or at the least it affects your cash flow while they drag through their mediation process.

You may get a better rate with a merchant account (allowing for standing charges), you may not - it depends...... Someone will have a calculator showing the value of payments and charges that tip the balance.

For the guest, paying directly with a credit card gives Section 75 protection, so even if they only pay the deposit with a cc their entire payment is covered by the cc company. That legally enforceable protection is not available to people using Paypal as they are not dealing direct with the the vendor (owner). PP offer their own protection which may or may not be as good as/better than but isn't a legal requirement. Maybe an academic point, don't know what's going to happen with PP and Ebay becoming separate companies. (Anybody?)

Having the facility to take direct payments (a merchant account) means you've had some level of vetting by the card service provider, which adds to the confidence of the buyer/guest.

There's probably other pros and cons I've missed!
e-richard
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Post by e-richard »

greenbarn wrote: Someone will have a calculator showing the value of payments and charges that tip the balance.
You are right (as usual :wink: ). And even I had forgotten about this little tool:
http://www.holidayrentalmanagement.com/tools/index.php
** Richard
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Last edited by Guest on Thu Jul 16, 2015 10:41 pm, edited 1 time in total.
brightmike
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Post by brightmike »

I’m definitely not a PP fan but guess like a lot of people I used it since it was easy to set up. It would be cheaper for me to have a merchant account but when I applied via sagepay I was told I needed two years trading which I don’t have so I would need to explore some more options. I think most require that you have a business bank account which would be an added level of complexity and cost.

I didn’t realise section 75 didn’t apply to credit card payment via PP which explains why they have their own arbitration system.

Just to clarify, direct CC payment can only be taken over the phone or in person?
Our property website can be found by looking at our profile.
e-richard
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Post by e-richard »

brightmike wrote:Just to clarify, direct CC payment can only be taken over the phone or in person?
Not correct. Guest can enter cc details directly online to PP secure server, just like any other CC website.

Also, in my opinion, the protection offered by Section 75 in this business is somewhat exaggerated. It covers the guest in the event that YOU go bust or cancel the holiday, do a runner and do not deliver their holiday. Its not a replacement for holiday insurance.
** Richard
PIMS: Holiday Rental Management system
They say we learn from our mistakes. That makes me a genius !
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greenbarn
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Post by greenbarn »

e-richard wrote: Also, in my opinion, the protection offered by Section 75 in this business is somewhat exaggerated. It covers the guest in the event that YOU go bust or cancel the holiday, do a runner and do not deliver their holiday. Its not a replacement for holiday insurance.
True, but what it does cover is if the property doesn't exist - the stuff of Daily Wail scare stories that's made guests twitchy, so it's a good confidence booster for that reason. And of course the card payment doesn't have to be for the full amount to give full protection.

BTW, I'm not suggesting that PP's protection is less - I have no idea - just pointing out that it's different (and AFAIK unregulated? )

We also had a late booking a couple of years back for all three of our units from someone who'd booked at a relatively nearby place and the bank had closed on the owners. He wasn't remotely confident about getting any of his money back (the full payment, about £1200-£1500 IIRC). I wonder if he books anywhere now that doesn't allow him to pay by CC?

That was one of the factors that tipped my decision to take card payments. I now do this via my own website, integrated with PIMS, that redirects the guest to the secure gateway. We don't take card payments over the phone, and I have no idea why someone should want to give all their card information over the phone to a complete stranger at a private address, except that perhaps the Daily Wail hasn't told them not to.
Essar
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Post by Essar »

brightmike wrote:I’m definitely not a PP fan but guess like a lot of people I used it since it was easy to set up. It would be cheaper for me to have a merchant account but when I applied via sagepay I was told I needed two years trading which I don’t have so I would need to explore some more options. I think most require that you have a business bank account which would be an added level of complexity and cost.
Have a look at Stripe, you can integrate it into your own website; use it with Wufoo forms, or just use the dashboard to create a customer and invoice them.

Charges are 2.4% +20p (UK).
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