Retailers pile pressure on Visa and Mastercard fees in legal battle

More than a dozen major brands have logged fresh legal claims over card payment fees following Amazon’s attack on Visa’s transaction fees last month.

According to The Telegraph Levi, Superdry and AllSaints are among claimants in High Court writs that are seeking compensation over historic charging fees by Visa and Mastercard, which were allegedly in breach of competition laws. 

The fashion chains are being advised by lawyers at Stephenson Harwood.

These claims were logged in the days after Amazon said it would block customers from shopping with Visa credit cards on its British website from next January due to “high fees” following Brexit.

Visa said the legal battle over interchange fees was not related to Amazon’s decision.

A spokesperson for Visa added: “Visa considers all claims relating to interchange to be without merit and will be vigorously defended.”

Last year the Supreme Court ruled that fees imposed by both Visa and Mastercard on retailers for every card transaction were a breach of both EU and UK competition law.

Big four grocers Sainsbury’s, Asda and Morrisons led the charge in taking Mastercard and Visa to court. Sainsbury’s settled its legal dispute with Mastercard in August, but its claim with Visa is ongoing. 

The amount of damages that retailers could be entitled to is not yet determined.

Mastercard said: “We firmly believe that retailers of all sizes derive real value from our network and we are committed to supporting our retail partners to adapt and grow their businesses through this challenging time.”