United Card Solutions is a payment processor and merchant account provider working in the US since it was established in August 2015 and the headquarters of the company is located in Portland, Oregon. Wells Fargo functions as the acquiring bank for United Card Solutions and First Data uses United as a reseller for its products via i3 Verticals, LLC.
It is believed that it is either related to or has a partnership with other merchant account providers. Performance Merchant Alliance, National Card Solutions, and Direct Processors are the leading names that appear to be collaborating with United Card Solutions. These credit card processors have the same website layout and use a similar marketing strategy. A renowned online reputation management specialist, Jeff Easter, handles the tasks for these four companies.
The position of Jeff Easter in these companies is still a topic of discussion because it’s unclear whether he founded these, worked as an employee, or was given a job as public relations representative. However, it is confirmed that United Card Solutions, National Card Solutions, and Direct Processors show Jeff Easter as their primary contact. On the Better Business Bureau website, you can see him as a principal of performance in Merchant Alliance information. There is verified information that the company also partnered with BlueSquare Resolutions in the past.
Important Update
United Card Solutions has provided its credit card services until December 2021. Since then, their website has been inaccessible. The BBB’s information concluded that the website is down, and the company has shut down its merchant account services. However, this United Card Solutions review will keep you updated with any relevant news about the company’s reactivation.
United Card Solutions and Prestige Payment System
It is hard to conclude that United Card Solutions is an independent firm and solely providing own services. No doubt, it is legally declared as a reseller of First Data. However, there has been a great degree of similarities observed between United Card Solutions and some other credit cards that are suspected of collaborating with other organizations.
In addition, merchants have accused United Card Solutions, National Card Solutions, and Direct Processors of being representative processors (DBAs) of the Prestige Payment System.
Prestige Payment System is a Portland-based company with an ill reputation because of its misleading strategies. Merchants have almost the same issues as described below in this United Card Solutions Review. These companies share similar allegations; however, there is a lack of independent verification of these accusations. You can find potential similarities in the services offered, strategies implied, and complaints submitted against National Paymentech, Performance Merchant Alliance, and Prestige Payment System. Merchants are advised to inquire thoroughly about these credit card processors and Jeff Easter’s link with them before signing up.
Pricing Structure
United Card Solutions advertises its company as an affordable payment processing service for merchants. Their marketing pivots on providing low rates to merchants, but the claim is questionable because it is unfeasible to find a detailed pricing plan on their website. Furthermore, many official and unofficial merchant reviews claim they were charged more than they signed up for.
Although initially, they quoted a processing fee of 0% debit card and 1% credit card, it was recorded that a swiped and a keyed-in rate of 1%-4.99% was charged for the transactions. The virtual Terminal is also charged at around 1%-4.99% per transaction, and the provider does not disclose the payment gateway fee.
United Card Solutions Contract Length and Terms
As described, United Card Solutions works as the reseller of First Data and has also been partnered with BlueSquare Resolutions. These processors share similar terms for contracts; United Card solution offers a three-year contract same, and the same goes for First Data, BlueSquare, and i3 Verticals.
According to the conditions of these sellers, the contract has an early termination fee or a liquidated damage clause, and there is no disclosure of monthly fees. United Card Solutions resells the non-cancellable lease agreement First Data Global Leasing provided. Equipment lease terms are locked for 48 months. Merchants also have to pay an annual PCI compliance fee of $197.
United Card Solutions Virtual Terminal and Payment Gateway Rates
Alongside providing payment processing services to standard business sizes, United Card Solutions offers businesses a virtual terminal and payment gateway services. Its website has a dedicated portion to advertise the additional services of a virtual terminal and payment gateway.
But like the practice of undisclosed prices for other services, the cost of these two services isn’t disclosed either. But it can be expected that all standard charges like a gateway, technical support, batch fees, and additional interchange rate for card-not-present payments will be applicable.
United Card Solutions Complaints
United does not own a good reputation in terms of online reviews. You can locate over 100 negative complaints reported on various authentic websites against it without even counting BBB reviews. The most concerning comments are about calling the company a scam or rip-off; others have discussed the issues like undisclosed terms and misrepresenting the company’s pricing. Having negative feedback of this nature is a significant drawback comparing when comparing it to top-rated processors.
United Card Solutions BBB Rating
United Card Solutions has not been accredited with Better Business Bureau and has no official rating. There might be difficulty in evaluating because of conflicting reviews about the company on the BBB profile or the incomplete information on their website.
Nine complaints have been registered on the BBB website in the last three years. Product and service-related issues have 3 out of 9 reviews recorded, while 4 out of 9 complaints are about billing and collection. The rest of the two complaints describe advertisement and sales problems. United Card solutions have resolved all the issues registered in the previous 36 months to the merchant’s satisfaction. Eight complaints were either not resolved to the customer satisfaction level or left unnoticed by the company.
United Card solutions BBB Informal Reviews
Apart from the other nine registered complaints you can find on the BBB website, there are six informal comments submitted on the BBB website. Only one of these six informal complaints has described a positive experience with the company. At the same time, the five are inclined towards negative feedback, and one accuses the company of being a rip-off and scam. The complaints usually discuss the deceptive terms used to entrap the new customers.
United Card Solutions Lawsuit
There has not been any class-action lawsuit or Federal Trade Commission complaint filed against United Card Solutions. While this is a positive aspect, the processor has not been in the industry long enough, and it is unusual for providers to have a serious legal history at such an early stage.
United Card Solutions Customer Support
United Card Solutions has a dedicated phone number displayed on its website for customer care. United claims this number provides live support from the company’s representatives 24/7.
However, the company’s promise of 24/7 customer support is not fulfilled as merchants face difficulty contacting the respective representatives or registering their complaints. United Card Solutions has experienced a substantial fall in its rating because of its customer support. Having customer support all day long is redundant if the representatives are not helpful at all.
Negative Aspects of United Card Solutions
United Card Solutions is struggling to make a worthwhile reputation among merchants, but it is becoming difficult considering the drawbacks in its advertising and pricing. While it is natural to receive some negative feedback, United has faced backlash in almost all its services. On top of this, the customer service has proven ineffective and tackling these complaints. Below is the summary of limitations in the United Card Solutions operations that make it an unfeasible choice for merchant service providers.
Equipment Leases
United Card Solutions offer an equipment lease for a locked 48-month term through First Data Global Leasing.
Merchants are advised to consider another option rather than lease Equipment from First Data Global Leasing. The installments offered by United Card Solution to lease this equipment are far more expensive and worse than buying the equipment at its original cost. From what merchants have experienced, United Card solutions resell First Data’s equipment lease for $139 per month over four years. At the same time, the same equipment can be bought from some other marketplace for less than $500.
Furthermore, a former employee of United Card Solutions has revealed that the company trains them to misstate the fee deducted for the First Data equipment lease as the processing fee. Customer service reps are told to assure business owners that a 0% rate for PIN debit transactions and 1% for standard credit card transactions will be implied. However, these rates are not according to the actual fee deducted by the company and are blatantly misleading.
Long Term Contract
United Card Solutions provide a three-year-long contract with hefty indispensable early termination fees. The inevitable early termination fee is not up to the industry standard mark and increases the company’s negative reputation. Long-term and entrapping contracts are a sign that the company’s services are not up to par with its rivals, or they are guilty of misleading their clients. Otherwise, there is no reason to trap merchants in a contract against their will.
Telemarketing
United Card Solutions relies heavily upon telemarketing and its own representatives to deal with customer service. Several complaints have been registered where merchants have accused representatives of aggressive and unprofessional responses to phone-based complaints. Merchants say there is a significant discrepancy between the represented and actual pricing, contract terms, and equipment lease after the account opens. The increasing rate of complaints for a company recently introduced in the market is a red flag for future clients.
Suspicious Management Practices
Although there have not been any verified proofs of United Card Solutions’ involvement in manipulating promotion strategies, however, the seeming involvement of Jeff Easter is suspicious.
Jeff Easter is alleged to be highly involved in or even own this company, and his engagement in maintaining other similar processors cannot be ignored. Analysts all over the internet have noticed suspicious activities like the involvement of company workers in leaving fake positive ratings to build the position among its competitors.
Clearly, no solid evidence has been confirmed of United Card Solution’s participation in this illegal activity; however, confirmation from the merchant’s side is encouraged because of its involvement with various DBAs.
Deceptive charges
Many reviews have been posted against it for deducting unsigned fees every month. Merchants state that the company has been deducting money from their accounts for years, even after they closed their accounts with it, along with paying the termination fees.
The representatives trap the small business owner with the promise to save their monthly fees; however, they end up paying way more than they bargained for.
Poor Customer Support
United Card Solutions is infamous for its unprofessional customer support representatives and framework. Merchants have reviewed that a representative never answers their calls; they are told to wait or left to talk to computers. Most queries are responded to through automated messages instead of customer support personnel.
The workers who are highly involved in enhancing the company’s positive aspects do not answer after the account setup.
The Verdict
United Card Solutions has a poor reputation among merchants from all parts of the business industry. The number of negative reviews by business owners who have had dealings with United Card Solutions makes it a credit card processor with a below-average rating. Merchants and ex-employees of the provider both warn future clients and employees from approaching United.
This United Card Solutions review can only rate the provider with a below-average rating. Small business owners, welfare companies, and large enterprises are advised to keep this processor at the last of their choices. Due to the current rate of negative rating, it will soon be considered a failed merchant account processor.
