The term “high-risk merchant account” refers to a payment processing account for firms that are deemed high risk by financial institutions. Because high-risk organizations are more likely to experience chargebacks, they must pay greater costs for merchant services due to their increased vulnerability.
If your company has a high risk for chargebacks, or if your account has had numerous chargebacks and refunds in the past, your bank may place a rolling reserve on your account. The sum of money will be set aside to cover the likelihood of chargebacks or fraud on your credit card.
What Businesses are High Risk?
Chargebacks and hacking assaults are more common in certain businesses than others, and refunds are more common in the tourism industry than in stationery stores. If a flight is cancelled or delayed for whatever reason, the travel firm should bear the brunt of it.
Unfortunately, we can’t include every possible industry or company type, and they’re all over the place. However, the following are some of the most frequent:
- Pharmaceuticals
- Dating
- Gaming
- Antiques
- Annual memberships
- Software
- Lodging/travel
- Cars/car parts
- Jewellery
- Tobacco/vaping
- Warranties
As a result, several of these business models might be dangerous. Car sales and jewelry sales are two examples of high-volume transactions. The yearly membership or travel niche might have a large number of dissatisfied clients that start chargebacks. Having a non-standard merchant account is required for certain companies or comparable ones.
Why is your business high risk?
For a variety of reasons, your company may be labeled high-risk. And of course, various banks and payment providers have varied perspectives on what constitutes high-risk behavior. What some may deem a dangerous business idea may turn out to be a no-brainer for others, so be sure to thoroughly research your possibilities.
On the other hand, every supplier follows a set of established rules when determining how hazardous you are for them to work with. The following are the primary reasons why you may be granted a high risk merchant account:
- History of chargebacks: This occurs when the cardholder’s complaint or disagreement prompts the issuing bank to return monies to the cardholder.
- Returns: If your company has a habit of issuing refunds regularly, payment processors may conclude that you, the merchant, are engaging in fraudulent activity and assign your company a high-risk classification to protect themselves.
- Delivery: Providing a product or service to a customer in a reasonable amount of time increases the likelihood that something may go wrong, putting the provider’s firm at risk of failure.
- Industry Reputation: If the sector is renowned for having a high rate of discontent, fraudulent transactions, or being targeted by fraudsters, what are the chances of being targeted?
- Credit Score: If your credit score is too low, you may be assigned a high-risk rating, mostly because it will be more difficult for you to settle any negative balances.
- MOTO Transactions: If your company conducts transactions over the phone (through a virtual terminal), without the card being physically present, or if a customer purchases in person, there is a greater likelihood that the cardholder is not aware of all of the facts.
- Brand New Business: Payroll processors are reassured by prior credit card processing since it demonstrates to them that your firm will continue to be lucrative in the same manner as it has in the previous. On the other hand, as a new firm, you don’t have any previous credit card processing experience, making your company a high-risk investment instantly.
- Automated Billing: When consumers get automatic invoicing, there is the possibility that they may challenge the fee since they will have forgotten that they signed up for your service.
- MATCH listing: It is an abbreviation for the MasterCard alert that informs customers when a merchant has been terminated in the past.
- High volume: If your company conducts a large number of transactions, the total financial risks are larger, and there is a greater likelihood that criminals would try to steal data or credit card information from your company.
Positives and negatives of having a high-risk business
High-risk businesses have another drawback: they may always fail. When a seller has had a lot of chargebacks or has a history of fraud, the bank may refuse to create an account for the seller.
Other drawbacks of having a risqué account include:
- Transaction fees: Low-risk businesses pay a lower commission rate than high-risk merchants.
- Monthly or annual fees: Having a high-risk merchant account is expensive, and you should expect to spend between $50 and $100 a month to keep your account active. Depending on your company’s kind and transaction history, some banks may charge you $500 per month.
- Reserves: A rolling reserve is often charged to a high-risk merchant. The bank has removed money from the account when a seller has chargebacks or fraud instances, a rolling reserve function as a safety net.
It isn’t easy to run a risky company. So, what can be said in its favor? Here are a few examples:
- International distribution: As a result, your firm might expand at an exponential rate. Customers can select from a variety of currencies, which sellers may make available to them. They’re also authorised to sell outside of their nation.
- Better protection: Having a lot of chargebacks may lead to a merchant’s contract with a payment system being terminated, which means they won’t be able to take Visa or MasterCard cards at their business. A chargeback limit isn’t anything to be concerned about if you’re a high-risk business. However, this does not imply that you may disregard your safety.
Conclusion
There are a wide variety of reasons why your company can be regarded as high-risk. The procedure goes smoothly if you choose a trustworthy payment platform to set up a high-risk merchant account.
