Total Merchant Services Overview
Total Merchant Services is a mid-size merchant account provider that resells the contracts and services of Global Payments. The company claims to have served over 500,000 merchants and to process over $12 billion in transactions per year. Founded in 1996, Total Merchant Services prides itself on having been named “ISO of the Year” by the Electronic Transactions Association in 2012.
Total Merchant Services’s products include NFC- and EMV-compatible countertop terminals, mobile phone payment processing, a virtual terminal, an online payment gateway, online shopping cart integration, and gift and loyalty programs. The company has also launched its own proprietary credit card terminal called the “Groovv Terminal One,” a smart device designed to meet current EMV requirements and accept the payment methods of the near-future. Total Merchant Services offers 24/7 phone support and email support. Joe Kaplan is the CEO of Total Merchant Services.
In 1996, Total Merchant Services entered the credit card processing industry and was acquired by North American Bancard in 2017.
Total Merchant Services contracts include a $295 early termination fee, varying PCI compliance fees and expensive equipment leases with high termination fees.
There is confusion among Total Merchant Services’ own agents over whether there is a termination fee. Some agents claim that they were told that there was no such fee, and others claim that there is still a termination fee.
Over 100 complaints about Total Merchant Services accuse them of being a scam and a ripoff. Most of the complaints stem from poor sales tactics and customer service.
In November 2018, a class action lawsuit against Total Merchant Services was resolved. The lawsuit alleged that the company violated the Telephone Consumer Protection Act by purchasing telephone numbers from an unknown source.
Despite its dedicated phone lines and email address, Total Merchant Services does not rank among our top processors for great customer service.
The Better Business Bureau currently rates Total Merchant Services as “A+” and has received 31 complaints in the past 36 months, 11 of which have been resolved to the merchants’ satisfaction.
Total Merchant Services appears to employ independent sales agents and sub-ISOs to market its services. The majority of these complaints describe deceptive sales strategies by sales agents across the country.
At a previous update, Total Merchant Services advertised a $100,000 signing bonus for new sales partners. This bonus offered $100 per new account on top of the existing bonus structure, but it was unclear how many new accounts would be needed to reach the $100,000 bonus.
Total Merchant Services is an average merchant account provider. It is not likely that merchants will be able to obtain competitive pricing through a top-rated credit card processor.
At a glance
Founded: 1996
Location: Woodland Hills, California
Acquiring bank: Wells Fargo Bank
Website: totalmerchantservices.com
Phone number: 888-848-6825 x9400
E-mail: [email protected]
Total Merchant Services Promotional Video
Online reputation and reviews
Total Merchant Services has received over 300 negative reviews across all consumer protection websites. This is a disproportionately large amount of complaints compared to similar-sized competitors. Complainants describe undisclosed fees, misrepresented rates, difficulty closing accounts, and withheld funds. On several websites, there is an active debate between the company’s sales agents and merchant complainants about whether Total Merchant Services charges an early termination fee. The available information seems to suggest that not all agents with the company charge an early termination fee, but some merchants are subject to an early termination fee of up to $395.
Legal actions and lawsuits
There are no outstanding or recently resolved legal actions related to Total Merchant Services at this time.
Have you used Total Merchant Services for your business? Rate the company at the top of this post and tell us about your experience in the comment section below:
the agent’s point of view
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Lets talk about this disgusting company I have been a agent for them for over 8 years got a good profilo with them And was doing good till the new ownership came in And the nightmare begins.
This company is the worst to do anything with,new accounts, terminal programming, gateway services ,cash program ,take back bonus agent support, Merchant support, closing accounts I don’t care what it is its like doing bushiness with a bunch of kids with bad attitudes the worst part is thy have no idea what there doing ,all my clients I switch out,Amen!The fees keep going up BUT you don’t get any more money thy have every excuse to not pay there agents if you have a family and build your profile keep a eye’s on your accounts before you lose everything like I almost did I was one step a head of theses thefts I do a deal a day so there best agent and the owner Marc Gardner choundent make my coffee if thy tryed. I have my own system now and the nightmare is over if your a agent working for this companys go to visa pay the 10.000 get regressed and live your life stress free I can’t see this company making it much longer the scams the lies I feel real bad for any agent or merchant with any of theses companys, money always being took out of merchants accounts if thy can’t get it from your clients thy just go to your account like your Joe bag of donuts the jerkoff’s reck life’s and destroy companies. take it from someone who has lived with the stress from this company, its not wouth your time or money there agent program is padded and not what thy say it is, you have to get in bed with all your merchants to keep geting paid or you have to worry about the compmay taking your money.so do you what to be a agent now RUN and RUN fast
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http://www.totalmerchantservices.com