Is a posing a $20 minimum purchase on credit cards even allowed?

Question

I have heard of a $10 minimum, but $20 seems to be ridiculous, and horrible business practice. The name of the bar that did this is called Gaffneys in Saratoga Springs NY. Even though I only purchased two beers, the bill came to $12 and they actually wrote in pen $20. I read on the internet that visa and mastercard don't allow merchants to do this. I have a mastercard debit card.

Answer 1

I worked for a company that installed a cc machine.  The rep told my boss the policy in NY is there can not be a minimum.  The business can hang a sign suggesting a minimum, but that can't demand it.  If the business wont accept your card for less then the min. you must report them.  They can and will get their cc capabilities revoked.

Answer 2

Mastercard and Visa do have in their agreements that there cannot be a minimum purchase required.  

Now, what can you do?  A good bit actually.  Call your bank, they should have a specialized department for this(I'd call customer service, generally speaking it will be the same department that handles lost stolen cards)  They will report the violation of the agreement and the bar will get a not so nice call from Mastercard.  If they get enough reports about it and they continue this practice, Mastercard could terminate their agreement with the bar.  So no more taking credit cards at all.  

Answer 3

It's their company, they can do what ever they want.

Answer 4

Mastercard and Visa have contracts with merchants that state they cannot charge a minimum purchase amount.  Here's a link where you can report them (you will have to scroll down a bit and look for the Mastercard part):

http://consumerist.com/consumer/your-rig...