That might be a step forward for consumers, but it does not address the problem that retailers are dealing with. In our case, there are no provisions or guidelines to make the system more transparent. We really have no way of knowing fee increases for particular cards. Nor do we have the option of recommending that consumers use one card versus another. At some point, we might also see priority routing, which applies to debit cards and systematically routes the payment method on the debit card, Visa or MasterCard and does not allow the retailer to choose. Taken together, these factors make it impossible to manage these significant costs in the neighbourhood of $4 billion.
Last year, retail sales were around $425 billion. Take off $100 billion for cars. So on less than $300 billion—we know that retail sales have dropped 5% so far this year—merchants are paying over $4 billion in card fees. The consumer is the one who foots the bill in the end.