Why Am I Paying Processing Fees?
What are processing fees?
Processing fees are the amount of money that banks and credit card companies charge a business every time their credit/debit account is used. Simply put, when a customer pays for goods or services the business has to pay the bank a fee in order to accept the payment.
Where do processing fees come from?
It is important to understand that processing fees do not originate from Nationwide Energy Partners (NEP) nor do we keep them. Rather they are issued by a collection of three parties: the card issuer, the card network, and the payments processor.
The card issuer (distributes credit/debit cards) is a bank or financial institution, like Chase Bank, Fifth Third Bank, Huntington National Bank, or KeyBank. You’ll notice on your credit/debit card a logo for Visa or Mastercard; this is the card network. Card networks facilitate payments and card transactions working with the card issuer to approve the requests sent by the payment processor. Lastly, the payment processor is the organization that works behind the scenes (i.e the process that puts in your transaction request with the business in order to exchange money for goods or services).
Different circumstances may affect how much of a processing fee these combined institutions may charge. And it is important to note, this is a fee that occurs not just in your bills but also when you go out to dinner, pick up your dry cleaning, or even purchase some coffee from your local cafe.
Why DO we CHARGE processing fees?
Since around 2013, businesses have been permitted to pass along processing fees to consumers, but NEP refrained from doing so. NEP covered the cost required by the three parties mentioned above. However, as fee structures and payment preferences have changed over the past twenty years, NEP has been forced to adapt, which includes passing a portion of the processing fees onto residents.
How much are the processing fees we charge?
The processing fees charged will vary depending on the form of payment. We would also like to note that, as mentioned previously, we are only passing on a portion of the processing fee to residents and continue to absorb the balance of the fees charged by the credit card companies and bank processors. To learn about the various fees, please see below:
Autopay - NO FEE
Credit and Debit - $2.75
ACH (checking & savings account or e-check) - $1.50
Kroger or Walmart - Independent service fees determined by the processor
How can you NOT pay these processing fees?
You can avoid paying processing fees on your bills with NEP by signing up for Autopay. Autopay allows you to make automatic payments from your bank account or credit/debit card each month. Signing up for Autopay is easy, takes only a few minutes, and can be canceled at any time. Click here for instructions on how to get started with Autopay.
Still have questions?
NEP’s resident website offers many useful resources, including a page with conservation tips. You will also find many respected resources online providing other energy-saving tips. Our resident support specialists are also available to work with you Monday through Friday, 8 am to 6 pm EST, at 877-818-2637 or via email at ResidentSupport@NationwideEnergyPartners.com