Clown-Free Zone... sorry, no clowns allowed Message Board

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Pastimes : Clown-Free Zone... sorry, no clowns allowed

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To: Lucretius who started this subject	4/9/2003 12:06:33 AM
From: broadstbull	of 436258

Visa, MasterCard refund ordered By Jenny Spitz, CBS.MarketWatch.com Last Update: 5:57 PM ET April 8, 2003 OAKLAND, Calif. (CBS.MW) -- A California judge ordered Visa and MasterCard to refund foreign currency conversion fees to cardholders Tuesday. The decision, handed down in Oakland by Judge Ronald Sabraw, found that the two credit-card giants violated California's unfair competition law by failing to adequately disclose the fees to consumers. Attorneys who brought the case against Visa and MasterCard on behalf of cardholders estimate the two companies will have to refund more than $800 million to U.S. customers. The ruling affects just MasterCard's California cardholders, but all of Visa's cardholders because Visa is based in California and is under the court's jurisdiction, said plaintiff attorney Allan Steyer. MasterCard was quick to point out that Sabraw found the company acted lawfully on two of the three counts in the lawsuit. The amount of restitution has yet to be specified, with the judge setting an April 28 deadline for the companies to devise a refund procedure. The two credit-card companies charge consumers a 1 percent fee to convert foreign currencies. MasterCard said its exchange rates are "extremely favorable" to customers and not deceptive since they are specified in customer agreements. Calling the ruling "seriously flawed in both fact and law," MasterCard said it will appeal. Part of the ruling called for the two companies to amend their operating rules to require their member banks to disclose the currency conversion fees. The California judge is "usurping authority that properly resides with federal authorities" by making the ruling, MasterCard said. Jenny Spitz is headline editor for CBS.MarketWatch.com in San Francisco.

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