Rejected petition Abolish minimum transaction charges for card payments

Some UK merchants impose a minimum spend on credit/debit card transactions. This in in contravention of contracts with service vendors like Visa/MasterCard. Occasionally, local laws supersede their policies. We must change the law so merchants in the UK adhere to the spirit of terms of service, in a society where card payments are increasingly frequent.

Say in a shop, cafe or pub, you order something, try to pay with a card, only to be told "sorry, it's a £5/£10/£20 minimum". Many merchants are making a markup on these transactions; also prohibited by terms of service.

The only thing that allows this to continue in the UK is a lack of explicit prevention under local laws. Customers need a valid method of complaint beyond that of the vendor's process, and merchants admittedly need to re-negotiate rates with vendors to make card purchases more palatable for all.

It's the 21st century. Visa was an olympic sponsor. Let's make electronic currency as valuable as physical currency.