merchantaccountinfo's Journal: Merchant Services Help Small Businesses

Canada Businesses Retain Your Personal Credit Card Details

Many people wonder if it is illegal for businesses to keep customers credit card details in Canada. The answer is no. This is exclusive to Canada where businesses who use merchant services are legally entitled to store a customers credit card information for a period up to six years.

There are specific rules that must be followed for electronic record keeping when using a merchant account. The obligation for safe record keeping is the same for online businesses in comparison to a traditional brick-and-mortar business. If you are a small business owner, there are credit card providers available to handle legal compliance when it comes to using this type of service.

Electronic Record Keeping

All businesses who handle credit card information on a computerized system have an obligation to maintain, retain, and safeguard a customers personal credit card information. A business using a computerized payment processing system must adhere to strict rules regarding the privacy of their customers. It is also important that well-maintained records are kept so that an accurate calculation can be made regarding tax obligations and other entitlements.

Data Retention

There are several reasons why businesses in Canada keep your personal credit card information:

- Businesses in Canada have a legal requirement enforced by Revenue Canada to retain all of a customers credit card information for a period of seven years

- Internet purchases require a credit card to complete the transaction. Businesses are required to ensure that this information of recorded responsible through encrypted record storage

- When a customer requires a refund, a record of the transaction is needed to process the refund payment. The last four digits of the credit card number are needed in these cases to prove that the customer is not trying to obtain cash by using some means of fraudulence.

- Some customers tend to initiate chargebacks sometimes months after making a purchase. During these circumstances, businesses can easily access customer records to investigate a reason for the chargeback.

- If a website has some sort of auto renewal arrangement for some service such as a subscription, then that customers credit card information must be stored by the website online payment processing system.

- In the event of a cancellation of a purchase used with a credit card, stored credit card information allows the business to quickly reverse the charge and refund the customer.

Customer Privacy

A customer service representative has an obligation to verify a customers credit card information however it should never be read aloud from a database. Customer credit card information that is either printed or spoken over the phone is often referred to by only the last four digits of the credit card number. This account is then verified when the customer provides other personal information.

Merchant Account Providers for Small Business Owners

Small business owners have the opportunity to benefit greatly from the services of a reputable merchant account provider. If you own a small business that needs to accept credit cards in order to sell your products or services, then it is important to do business with a merchant account provider that you can rely on. Selecting the right merchant services can have a huge impact on your profits as well as save the hassle of dealing with record-keeping and other requirements.