The Government is to row back on an earlier decision to outlaw surcharges on credit card payments, The Irish Timesunderstands. Paul Cullen, Consumer Affairs Correspondent reports.
Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment Micheál Martin now plans to order an assessment of the impact of the surcharge ban before deciding whether to go ahead with the measure, even though it has been approved by the Oireachtas.
The Consumer Protection Bill, which prohibits traders from imposing charges relating to the payment method used by customers, was signed into law by President Mary McAleese last weekend. Mr Martin is due to sign the commencement orders for the legislation next week.
However, it is understood the Minister has decided not to proceed at this stage with commencement orders for the parts of the Bill relating to surcharges.
Instead, he will commission a regulatory impact assessment before making a final decision. It is unlikely this will be completed in the remaining lifetime of the Government.
A spokeswoman for the Minister confirmed there would be "a slight delay" in commencing some provisions. Most of the Bill would be commenced but there was still "some work" to be done on "one or two elements" of the Bill.
Mr Martin's change of heart follows lobbying by the travel and telecommunications industries, whose members often charge consumers extra for paying by credit card or not paying by direct debit. They were taken by surprise when the measure was added to the Bill during committee consideration of its contents last month.
The Irish Travel Agents' Association (ITAA) argued that the handling of credit card payments is seven times more expensive than debit cards and that small operators would be most affected by the surcharge ban.
It said many travel agents had quoted prices and taken deposits for holidays this summer on the understanding that they could charge extra for credit card payment, and that it was unfair to impose a ban while these transactions were still being processed.
"It costs travel agents up to 1.5 per cent extra to sell a holiday by credit card and even if a ban were introduced, consumers would end up paying these costs anyway. The only issue is whether the charges are transparent or not," said Simon Nugent, ITAA chief executive.
Earlier this month, cable company NTL reversed a much-criticised decision to charge existing customers €2 per bill if they do not pay by debit charge. The company is applying the surcharge to new customers but said this might have to be reviewed if a ban were introduced.
Other sections of the Bill to come into force next week will see the creation of a statutory National Consumer Agency with wide-ranging enforcement powers, and the transposition into Irish law of EU consumer protection measures.