Education Today Education Today Magazine
Mastercard and VISA are facing a claim worth over £4 billion being brought by a Class Representative on behalf of businesses across the UK – including hundreds of education and training providers who accept corporate cards.
The Competition Appeal Tribunal recently gave the go-ahead for the collective action that could see businesses compensated for the unlawful multilateral interchange fees (“MIFs”) set by Mastercard and VISA that applied to transactions involving commercial cards in the UK.
The claim alleges that businesses that received payments by commercial cards paid fees much higher than they should have been, causing them significant losses.
The claim period runs from June 2016 to June 2022, with damages continuing to accrue until the date of judgment or settlement. If you think your business received payment by commercial card in that time, you could be included in these proceedings.
A deadline for involvement in these claims has been set by the Tribunal and businesses are encouraged to register their interest now on the claim website to stay updated on developments in the proceedings and, if successful, to claim their share of any damages awarded.
Responding to the Tribunal’s judgment, Jeremy Robinson, a partner at Harcus Parker Limited, representing the Class Representatives said:
“We welcome the opportunity to hold Mastercard and VISA to account for imposing multilateral interchange fees at an unlawfully high level and causing substantial loss to UK businesses. We are pleased that this important claim will now proceed despite Mastercard and Visa’s attempts over the last two years to deny thousands of UK businesses a straightforward and effective route to justice through the Competition Appeal Tribunal.”
Stephen Allen, the director of the Class Representatives added:
“MIFs operate like a tax on business, increasing the fees businesses have to pay to their banks for accepting commercial card transactions. These claims seek to recover the losses businesses have suffered as a result of Visa and Mastercard’s practices and highlight the need for such practices to be abolished.
If you know your institution or business receives payment by commercial cards, or you would like to confirm whether your business does, then visit the claims website today, register, and find out.
For more information about the opt-in and opt-out collective claims, visit commercialcardclaim.co.uk.
