SALT LAKE CITY, Utah, Oct. 30, 2019 (Gephardt Daily) — Smith’s Food and Drug announced on its website Wednesday morning that it is accepting Visa credit cards again.
Back on March 1, it was announced by Kroger, the parent company of Smith’s, that its supermarkets and fuel centers would no longer accept Visa credit card payments effective April 3.
The ban affected 142 supermarket and 108 fuel centers across seven states, the announcement said. That broke down to 55 stores in Utah; 45 stores in Nevada; 23 stores in New Mexico; seven stores in Wyoming; and four stores each in Idaho, Montana and Northern Arizona, the statement said. Smith’s corporate headquarters is in Salt Lake City.
The reason given for the change was retailer fees charged by Visa, which Kroger characterizes as excessive, adding that Visa charges the highest fees of any payment cards accepted at Smith’s.
The change did not affect Visa debit cards, which were still accepted.
“Visa has been misusing its position and charging retailers excessive fees for a long time,” said Mike Schlotman, Kroger’s executive vice president and CFO, in a news release at the time.
As well as Visa credit cards, Smith’s stores will continue to accept all other forms of payment, including major credit cards such as Mastercard, Discover, and American Express; cash and checks; electronic benefit transfer cards from SNAP and WIC programs; and MasterCard and Visa debit cards both with and without PIN and health savings account cards.
