Think you’re paying extra for using a debit card in NC? Technically, you’re not
At this point, Triangle residents are used to seeing an extra line item on their bill when they pay with a credit card.
But if they use a debit card, there shouldn’t be that same fee. Still, in some cases, they might end up paying more with a debit card than they would with cash.
Full story: Are you paying extra for using a debit card in NC? Or skipping a ‘cash discount’?
Here’s what to know about paying with debit cards:
- It’s against the law for merchants to add a surcharge to payments made with debit cards — even if you select “credit” on the point of sale terminal, said Andy Ellen, president and general counsel for the North Carolina Retail Merchants Association.
- Mastercard and Visa also prohibit merchants from applying a surcharge on debit card transactions. If you’re using a Visa card and have a purchase issue, you can report it online.
- At the pump, customers might pay different prices depending on whether they’re using a card or cash. Paying with a debit or credit card might cost customers a few more cents per gallon than if they paid with cash. But the difference in price amounts to a cash discount, not a surcharge for using a card.
- If businesses charge customers who pay with credit cards an additional fee just for using that kind of payment, that’s considered a surcharge.
The summary points above were compiled with the help of AI tools and edited by Renee Umsted and Dave Hendrickson, who also reported, wrote and edited the full story in the link at top.
This story was originally published July 1, 2026 at 9:34 AM with the headline "Think you’re paying extra for using a debit card in NC? Technically, you’re not."
