Supermarket chain credit card choice defended by subsidiary

Dick Smith Electronics has defended a credit card choice made by Woolworths.

A supermarket chain subsidiary has defended its decision to no longer enable consumers to access their funds via credit card networks in its stores.

Dick Smith Electronics, a part of the Woolworths Group, backed the choice which was made on April 1st that saw the organisation reject payments on Visa Debit and Debit MasterCard networks, CRN reports.

The company routed payments through the savings and cheque options on its Eftpos system, not the Aussie credit section, so that it could avoid paying MasterCard and Visa fees.

Luke Schepen, a spokesman for Dick Smith, said there had been a positive reaction from customers and blamed financial institutions for extra bank fees that could be charged when using an Eftpos unit.

He added: "Certainly, we would advise customers that there are financial institutions out there that do not charge for Eftpos transactions."

This news comes after a piece in ABC noted that as many as half a million Australians were planning action against organisations regarding dishonour and late bank account fees.

By Emma North