Headquartered in Valencia, California, Passthrough Payments is a merchant service provider founded in 2006 with expertise in providing merchant accounts to high-risk businesses. For high-risk merchants here is a complete Passthrough Payments review.
The company does all the legwork for businesses facing complex challenges who find it difficult to get an agreeable service provider. It offers payment solutions for domestic and offshore companies and provides exceptional equipment programs and payment processing solutions, meeting high-security standards to compete with top-rated providers.
Passthrough Payments serves various B2B, e-commerce, online, and high-risk international businesses, along with multiple industries, including health and beauty, CBD, restaurants, marketing agencies, gaming, debt consolidators, SAAS, guns and firearms, credit repair, bail bonds, lotteries, casinos, property management, and numerous others. The provider offers virtual terminals, POS systems, e-check services and ACH processing, payment gateways, contactless NFC, shopping cart integration, fraud prevention tools, and mobile card readers.
The company accommodates merchants with payments through their mobile phones, using apps such as Apple Pay, PayPal, and Google Wallet. They also enable merchants to accept all major credit card brands, including Visa, MasterCard, Discover, and American Express. Furthermore, the provider offers cash discounts and a zero-fee program for merchants to eliminate their credit card processing fees. Here is a detailed Passthrough Payments review to help merchants determine if it is a suitable option for their business.
Passthrough Payments Review Based on Features and Services
In today’s ever-changing world, finding an affordable service provider that ticks all requirements isn’t easy. It is especially difficult for hard-to-place businesses already facing multiple challenges. Passthrough Payments reviews state that the company is explicitly designed to cater to such companies and provide a secure environment to help them run their business efficiently like any other. The provider works with various acquiring banks to facilitate the best credit card processing to merchants and offers revenue sharing to ISO and sales agents.
POS Clover Station
The provider offers an all-in-one package with Clover POS Station, helping merchants provide secure and simple payment processing through custom hardware. This POS is a suitable option for retail merchant accounts and restaurants that process regular card present transactions. Clover Station integrates receipt printers, cash registers, and payment terminals into a single platform with a pin pad, weight scale, and barcode scanner.
The provider offers TransArmor tokenization to ensure an additional layer of security. This technology keeps the cardholder’s data safe and encrypted and replaces their PAN (Personal Account Number) with a random token code to eliminate fraudulent activity. Furthermore, the company provides several apps that can be used on a smartphone to streamline a merchant’s day-to-day tasks. All the security and app updates are done automatically to save merchants from manually putting in extra time and effort.
Zero Fee Program
Credit card processing can be expensive, with rates increasing over time. According to Passthrough Payments reviews, the provider offers merchants a cash discounting option to eliminate or lower a big chunk of processing fees. The trick is to charge customers a 4% service fee for each sale and notify them at the counter as they swipe their credit card. The customer will have a chance to choose a different payment method or to accept the fee.
The merchant will either want to pay in cash or proceed with the payment. Once the payment is made, the merchant will get 100% of the purchase, as the consumer would have paid the processing fee through the credit card surcharge. This method is convenient for businesses that process a high volume of credit card transactions. However, it is useless for merchants who rarely process credit cards. Reviews indicate that the zero-fee program has more drawbacks than benefits.
Check 22
The company has taken digital checks (e-checks) to the next level. With check 22, an upgradation from check 21, customers can apply their electronic signatures to the check and how much they want to pay and when. This feature grants same-day funding without any reserves or volume limits. Merchants are given a customizable gift card with their company branding and an app to access everything on their smartphones. Check 22 does not have any limit on the chargeback percentage.
Credit Card Processing Solutions
According to the Passthrough Payments reviews cited online, the company provides comprehensive payment solutions for credit card processing for most business types. Whether you are running an online business, a B2B company with high volume requirements, or a startup business that needs secure payments, Passthrough Payments has solutions to accommodate your daily transaction needs. The provider offers mobile payment solutions for in-store and on-the-go payments and accepts all major credit card brands.
Moreover, Passthrough Payments provides a detailed analysis of a merchant’s existing payment statements to detect hidden fees. The company will let the merchants know if there is any loophole or if their existing processing deal is good enough.
Passthrough Online Business Solutions
Since most people prefer to shop and pay for their purchases from the comfort of their homes, online businesses are fast expanding, and with that, the need for an online merchant account is ever-increasing. The provider offers PCI-compliant virtual terminals, payment gateways, and secure portals to carry online transactions anywhere you want. It provides customized web design, shopping cart integration, and fraud protection to help merchants develop a user-friendly website to display and sell their services.
Since there is a higher risk of fraud and scams in online selling, online merchant accounts are slightly more expensive than the rest. Passthrough Payments review claims that the company provides the best services at lower rates. Merchants can create consumer databases to record customer behavior, spending habits, contact details, and other information from regular customers and maintain automatic processing.
Bad Credit Merchant Accounts
It is not children’s play to maintain perfect credit at all times. Sometimes, businesses go through a challenging phase, and their financial statement fluctuates. In any such case, it is difficult for companies to find a merchant account as banks usually do not issue a merchant account to a company with a bad credit history.
Passthrough Payments accommodates financial shelter to such companies by providing merchant accounts through its partnership with some major processors in the U.S. These processors refer the poor credit applicants to Passthrough Payments which provides affordable rates and enable the merchants to keep full control of their business.
Passthrough Payments Review Based on Cost and Contract Terms
There is little information about the company’s contract terms or pricing on online platforms and merchant reviews. The provider offers varying contract terms depending on the business’s type, size, and requirements and the agent setting up the account. Passthrough Payments advertises cash discounts and a zero-fee program that can eliminate the processing fee. Moreover, the company provides long-term equipment leases, although the terms are not mentioned.
Passthrough Payments Reviews show that the provider charges a per transaction rate of 1.00% to 4.99% for swiped and keyed-in payments. The company needs to provide information on its website about its early termination, setup, batch, virtual terminal, gateway, and PCI compliance fee. It should be noted that hard-to-place merchant accounts are charged higher than the rest because of increased chargebacks and multiple risk factors. Furthermore, the company’s contract terms are expected to be less flexible for such businesses.
Passthrough Payments Review Based on Sales, Marketing, and Customer Support
Passthrough Payments utilizes the expertise of its in-house sales team and hires independent resellers to market its services. The provider does not display misleading quotes on its website, and there are no complaints about its sales strategies. However, hiring independent sales representatives is never a good sign.
There is a phone number mentioned on the company’s website, but it is unclear if it is reserved for customers. The provider has mentioned an email address for merchants to address their concerns. Furthermore, it has provided a fax number and a live chat option for merchants in case of queries or complaints.
Passthrough Payments Review Based on Complaints
The provider has a low complaint count on public forums, as merchants have posted very few online reviews. None of the informal complaints have accused the provider of scamming the merchants. Moreover, no mentionable lawsuits or FTC reports were filed against the company. However, the low complaint rate is probably because the merchants have chosen not to post any online reviews, and the company is still growing and hasn’t reached that many clients for the complaints to appear on the surface.
Passthrough Payments is not accredited by Better Business Bureau and does not have a profile on the review platform. Consequently, no formal complaints are posted on BBB against the provider. This indicates that having minimum complaints does not always prove that a provider is perfect. It could just mean it keeps a low profile, and its merchants are addressing their complaints directly instead of posting them online.
Passthrough Payments Drawbacks
Passthrough Payments is an efficient service provider offering valuable features and payment solutions to merchants all around the country and outside. However, the company lacks in some major areas enough to push a business into troubled waters. Here is a Passthrough Payments review covering its shortcomings for merchants to keep in mind before signing up.
Undisclosed Terms and Pricing
Pricing, contract length, and conditions are some of the most crucial factors when choosing a payment processor, as they help merchants make up their minds. Passthrough Payments has given zero information about its contract terms or rates, and there is no way for merchants to decide if they can rely on the provider.
In such scenarios, merchants face multiple issues after trusting the provider. They discover many unreasonable clauses after signing up and are stuck with an unwanted payment processor they cannot afford. Undisclosed pricing and equipment lease terms can also indicate that the provider does not want to fix anything, has variable terms for each merchant, and there is a chance that it changes its pricing when it sees fit, which is a red flag.
High Pricing
High-risk merchant accounts cost higher than regular ones as they require additional security features, and there is a higher risk of loss and fraud. Passthrough Payments claims to offer cheaper rates than most service providers and offers a zero-fee program that eliminates processing fees. However, reviews prove otherwise. The company charges expensive fees with strict contract terms, which indicates that the provider may be misleading the merchants to attract more customers.
The zero-fee program sounds quite appealing but has its drawbacks. It is risky since it is still not completely legal in all states. Moreover, it is a way of transferring your processing fee to your customers by tricking them, which is unfair as they have to pay extra for each transaction. This can cause merchants to lose clients, resulting in losing revenue and profit instead of saving processing money.
Below Average Customer Service
Regardless of what kind of business they are running, a merchant deserves the best customer support from their service provider. Being labeled a reliable payment processor doesn’t just happen by offering a few products. It also requires providing 24/7 dependability to its clients.
Passthrough Payments does not offer competitive customer service and only provides sub-par options to its merchants as a helpline. The only number mentioned on the website is not reserved for customers, and sending an email is useless as most emails go without being responded to. Merchants are not given any way to reach the provider in case of any queries or concerns, which means that the provider is unreliable and does not prioritize its clients.
Final Verdict
Considering this Passthrough Payments review, it is concluded that even though the provider offers various attractive services and compatible features, it is not a suitable option for most businesses. There is an obvious hint that the provider portrays exciting offers on its website and uses a friendly and lively tone to attract more clients. But when the time comes to work on constructing positive results, the company does not provide up-to-par services and fails to meet the merchant’s expectations.
Merchants running a hard-to-place business are advised to look through available options and search for a more compatible service provider who understands their requirements, offers an honest approach, provides affordable pricing, and is available at all times.
