Premier Account FAQ's
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How much does the Premier Account cost?

The cost of this service is minimal. There are no upfront deposits, no minimum monthly volumes to maintain, and no extra processing fees to pay to the bank. You simply pay setup and monthly fees, then a small fee for processing each of your transactions.

For more detailed information and compare the Premier Account with the Optimal and World Accounts please click here

How do I get paid?

By providing your payment information, you permit funds owing from your merchant account to be automatically deposited, be electric funds transfer, into the bank account that you specify

When do I get paid?

Payment is issued weekly, 14 days in arrears - please see below for more information.

How does the settlement period work and when do I get paid?

As mentioned in your contract, you will receive settlements (outpayments by the acquirer to your bank account) on a weekly basis. These settlements will be wired every Thursday. Please note that it can take a few days before international wires are credited to your account. Each following Monday you will receive a “Reconciliation Statement” via email, informing you about the total sum that is wired to your bank account. The acquirer automatically deducts the discount fee (and if applicable, any chargeback and/or refund fees) from your total transaction amount. All other fees will be separately invoiced by us. More information about the Reconciliation Statement will be provided once you have applied.

Besides receiving a reconciliation statement, you will also receive a CSV file which specifies all individual transactions. Information about the CSV file can be found in the attached documentation. More specific transaction data can be found in the Payvision Reporter, as mentioned above.

Can I use my existing merchant account with this service?

No. The Premier Account unlike the World Account is an integrated merchant account service. In addition to the processing of transactions, the credit card processing tracks information to automatically record credit card payments and credit card expenses. This means it is designed to connect exclusively to merchant accounts issued by ourselves

Can I use the VPOS system without a website?

Yes. If you don't have a web site we can activate your Merchant Account for your 'traditional' business, so you can start taking credit card payments directly from customers or by phone, fax, mail-order etc.

For more information please visit here

Providing false details and business descriptions

A number of businesses try to apply using false details and/or business descriptions e.g selling DVD's but in fact selling medication. As you can imagine this wastes alot of time for all parties involved, most importantly us. This practice is illegal and is classed under UK law as 'trying to acquire products or services under false pretenses'.

For this reason, anyone caught doing so will not only have their business details past over to the appropriate authorities, but will also be charged a £150 + VAT Fee

Any company who changes their business model must inform us as soon as possible, otherwise their account could be closed with immediate effect and no refund given

What is a transaction fee?

Bank card issuing associations charge a percentage of the sale for the use of their cards and this amount is referred to as a transaction fee. The percentage paid by the merchant may vary depending on the monthly sales volume, the average sale size and whether a transaction is processed with or without the card being physically present.

The Premier Account offers a competitive transaction fee of only 4.40%. In addition, there are no upfront deposits and no minimum monthly volume requirement

What is a gateway fee?

A gateway fee is applied by the transaction processor to cover the costs of receiving and processing the transaction. While a transaction fee is a contribution for the convenience of accepting credit card payments, a gateway fee pays for the use of the infrastructure to receive payment information, request authorisation from the customers bank, transmit the authorisation information to the merchant and to facilitate payment of the merchant.

What is a charge back?

A chargeback is a reversal of a sales transaction by the customer's credit card issuer. Chargebacks most often occur when a cardholder disputes a transaction and you, the merchant, cannot provide adequate proof that the transaction made to a cardholder's account is valid. A chargeback can also result from processing errors, authorisation issues, and/or any other transaction irregularities.

When a purchase is charged back to the merchant, a £20.00 fee and any fees charged by the customer's credit card issuer will be deducted from your account in addition to the value of the sale.

How can I avoid a chargeback?

It may not be possible to prevent all chargebacks. However, the Premier Account has attempted to reduce the number of chargebacks. First, the merchant's business name will appear on the customer's credit card statement. This reduces the risk of a customer not remembering the purchase. Second, a team of chargeback analysts review chargeback notifications and dispute a proposed chargeback where evidence exists.

As a merchant, you can help by ensuring that the name you register for the service is the name under which your business operates. You can also help by having your customers sign a sales receipt if they provide their credit card to you in person. Finally, if you are shipping goods, be sure to use a shipper that provides confirmation of delivery. A signed sales receipt or a confirmation of delivery will assist our chargeback analysts in disputing proposed chargebacks.

How do online payments get into my bank account?

By providing your bank account number, you permit funds owing from your merchant account to be automatically deposited, by Wire, into the bank account that you specify.

Can I use a PO Box or Free phone, local rate number etc?

Due to security, money laundering and privacy issues you must supply a land address and phone number when completing the documents. You may however, use a PO Box and a free phone or local charge number such 0845, 0800 and 0870 number etc. on your website

My domain name is not registered in our company name. Is this a problem?

Your web address (domain name) must be registered in your company name. The reason for this is that if a shopper searches your domain name, they can see who exactly owns the website they have spent money with. Basically everything needs to tally up for shopper confidence. This also helps stop fraudsters opening and closing businesses every couple of days.

Can I use my merchant account with other websites?

You may use your merchant account with other websites as long as they are selling similar products or services. Please note though that due to the potential high risk of chargebacks the business name that appears on the credit card or bank statement must match your website. For example if you have set-up an account using the business name 'DVD's R US' but are also selling picture frames on another website, and you wish to sue the same account, this would cause problems. For this reason you would need to set-up a second account

If you would also wish to have monies paid into seperate accounts, depending on which website someone has paid you, you will need to have different merchant accounts. We are unable to split monies from one merchant account into different banks accounts

Can I put monies owed to me into different bank accounts?

If you wish to have monies paid into seperate accounts, depending on which website someone has paid you, you will need to have different merchant accounts. We are unable to split monies from one merchant account into different banks accounts

Can I be a sole trader or an individual?

Unfortunately with the Premier Account we are unable to provide merchant accounts for sole traders or individuals.

What appears on a customers credit card statement?

The descriptor that you provide when you apply will appear on card statements

Can my business bank account be in a different country to my business?

Yes. However due to money laundering regulations your business bank account must be in the same name as your registered business

What requirements must my website comply with?

If you are selling online you must comply with certain website requirements. Once the website is compliant along with all the remaining documents the application will be passed to the bank for approval. For more information on what requirements are needed please click here.

The above requirements do not apply to MOTO (virtual terminal / VPOS) only merchants (unless a website is used in conjunction).

What Credit & Debit cards can I accept?

With the Premier Account you can accept many different types of cards. However there are certain condtions. Please click here to view cards available

What application documents and ID do I need to supply once I apply?

Due to money laundering regulations 1993 we are required to see different Proof of Identity and address in order to process your application. Once you apply you will receive an email with a list of supporting documents to return. These are stated below:

Identification Documents

1. Scan copy of valid ID of company's owners/director(s). Preferably Passport or National ID
2. Voided cheque (or a copy of a recent Bank Statement)
3. Certificate of Incorporation (and related documents)
4. A copy of the Terms & Conditions as listed on website
5. If applicable: 6 months previous processing (Excel spreadsheets are not accepted, unless they are accompanied by screen shots from the actual system)
6. If applicable: Copy of Business/Operating License(s)
   
   

   Application Documents
   
   

7. A completed application form
8. A completed MOTO (mail order, telephone order) application
9. If the business currently accepts or recently accepted card payments, you must supply photocopies of the last 3 months card processing statements, . The statements must clearly show sales, refunds, and chargeback’s
   
   For help in completing the documents please click here