Merchant Accounts for Kitchen and Bathroom Showrooms
Card processing for kitchen and bathroom businesses
Finding a solid and secure card processing solution for home improvements businesses such as kitchen fitters or bathroom suppliers, is renowned for being quite difficult. The reason for this is both industries fall under the high-risk category when it comes to merchant services. Here we look at how to get your application accepted and what to expect when applying for a bathroom or kitchen merchant account.
Why are kitchen and bathroom merchants deemed high risk?
Kitchen and bathroom fitters and suppliers are commonly known as higher risk merchants, mainly due to the long period between customer ordering the products and taking delivery/ fitting being complete. That coupled with the fact that transactions tend to be of high-ticket value and the industry has been known to experience above average levels of chargebacks. This means that finding the best card provider who will onboard kitchen and bathroom companies can be tricky.
Bathroom and kitchen business merchant account application
High risk merchant account applications tend to take a little longer to get approved by underwriting, therefore it’s really important that the business does everything it can to ensure things go as smoothly as possible. Although not all banks and providers will accept applications from kitchen and bathroom merchants, when you find one that does, you’ll be asked to provide the following;
- Transaction statements from your existing provider
- Company projections – if you are a new business
- Terms and Conditions
- Complaints procedure
Packaging your application correctly and providing as much information as possible to accompany it will reduce the time it takes to process through underwriting.
Cost of processing card payments for kitchen and bathroom companies
Despite the ‘high-risk’ title card processing rates and fees for home improvements businesses such as kitchen fitters, bathroom suppliers and tile companies don’t have to be eye wateringly high. The industry is a profitable one, so if you find the right merchant account provider, they will be keen to onboard your business at appealing rates. Remember when comparing merchant accounts, it’s important to do so on a pound for pound basis rather than the headline costs alone, considering elements like card machine rental, term length and PCI costs.
REVIEW YOUR COSTS HERETerminated kitchen and bathroom merchant account and payment gateway
Given the high-risk nature of kitchen and bathroom accounts, it is common for existing providers to terminate contracts or applications to be declined. The reason for this is that acquiring banks’ balance their risk portfolio meaning that they will pull away from certain high risk and high turnover industries, even though they could have been processing successfully for years. Criteria changes on a weekly basis, so if you are searching for alternative card payment solutions, we suggest using an unbiased Broker who should be up to date with banks which will accept new applications.
FIND ALTERNATIVE PROVIDERSFast settlement for kitchen and bathroom merchants
Settlement times for kitchen and bathroom merchants is imperative for cashflow and replenishing stock levels, therefore it’s huge consideration for merchants look to switch providers. Ordinarily merchants would expect to wait three days for card payment funds to reach their business bank account. Having said that if you are a start-up business or new to processing, providers will more than likely request a rolling reserve be placed on the account. The reserve is a percentage which is then released after a delayed period. This acts as a safety net should any chargebacks occur.
APPLY FOR A NEW ACCOUNT TODAYHow Merchant Advice Service can help
Merchant Advice Service help merchants make informed decisions when it comes to high-risk card payments. From face-to-face payments to e-commerce kitchen and bathroom stores, together with our partnering Brokers and Banks we have a wide range of payment facilities. Speak to our non-biased experts today.
CALL USLibby James
Merchant Services Expert
Libby James Co-founded Merchant Advice Service alongside David Bird in 2016. Her finance background, coupled with retail and customer service experience, gave Libby the drive to bring transparency and non-biased advice to the world of merchant services. Having come from the heavily regulated mortgage and insurance industry, Libby found it puzzling that other financial sectors lacked regulation and transparency leaving customers confused and unable to make informed decisions when it came to accepting card payments. This was soon to become Libby’s obsession!
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