Capital Merchant Solutions Inc. Review
Merchant Maverick's Rating: (4.5 out of 5)
Last Updated: April 30th, 2010.
Overview:
Capital Merchant Solutions (CMS) has been around for over a decade which is a great thing for us merchants. They're doing quite a few things right, so I'll keep this short and sweet.
I only found a couple negative reviews about them on RipOffReport, they have a great grade on BBB.org, they have only a few BBB complaints, they're up-front with their contract terms and cancellation fees and they offer downtime for all you seasonal merchants.
They also have a blog, but there isn't much content on it. I'd really like to see them start adding some good educational material to it. Some social media profiles would be nice too (i.e. Facebook, Twitter etc...).
All of that adds up to about a 4.5 out of 5.
To Visit The Capital Merchant Solutions Website Click Here
Date Established:
1997.
Location:
Bloomington, Illinois.
Domain Name(s):
- www.takecardstoday.com.
- www.dowcommerce.com.
- www.webstoremerchantaccounts.com.
- www.highriskeprocessing.com.
- www.holyprocessing.com.
- www.processaway.com.
- www.freeauthnet.com.
Parent/Partner Company:
Doesn't look like CMS is a subsidiary of any other company.
Type:
Registered ISO/MSP.
Acquiring Bank(s) (Acquirer):
HSBC Bank.
Payment Processor(s):
Global Payments, First Data (Nashville & Omaha), Elavon (NOVA) or TSYS (Vital).
Payment Gateway(s):
DowCommerce or Authorize.Net.
Do you need help setting up your payment gateway? See the payment gateway integration services page.
Trust Symbols:
The CMS BBB profile is sporting an "A+" rating as of this review with only 6 complaints in the last 36 months...good stuff.
Negative Reviews:
You can find two negative reviews on RipOffReport. Be sure to read the rebuttal's from CMS. Of all the negative reviews that I've read about a company, I have never seen a complaint be resolved with such professionalism as this one.
Common Complaints:
I couldn't find anything in common between any of their complaints because there aren't enough of them out there.
Verifiable Testimonials/References:
There are only a few testimonials on the CMS site, so it's not like you have much to choose from. I contacted all of them, and received a response from two merchant's. One of them was still happy with the service, the other one, not so much.
Security/Privacy:
It looks like their online application is "HTTPS" secured, but I'm not sure by which company, as they don't show any seal.
Customer Service:
Most of the feedback that I've received about CMS' customer service team has been pretty good. Apparently "honesty" is their strong point, which is a rare quality in this industry.
The reps that I've personally chatted with have all been very knowledgeable and detailed in their responses to my questions. Take a look below for answers to a few of the questions that I asked.
Contract Duration:
The CMS contract length is 3-years.
Cancellation Fee:
If you cancel within the first year, your fee will be $350. Anytime after that (prior to contract end), will result in a $250 cancellation fee.
Interchange-Plus Pricing:
Interchange-plus is offered by CMS.
Seasonal Downtime:
CMS does offer seasonal downtime at a charge of $8.95 during those inactive months. In order to reactivate the account, you'll be charged a fee of $25.
Product/Service Offering:
Internet and Retail.
Product/Service Specialty:
None in particular.
Don't forget to leave your review and rating in the comment section. 
No trackbacks yet.
January 19th, 2010 - 15:22
Recent review on them: http://www.ripoffreport.com/credit-card-processing-companies/capital-merchant-sol/capital-merchant-solutions-cms-256f2.htm
You’re right though, its very difficult to find a good credit card processor. I was going to go with bluepay but they have too many bad reviews like InternetSecure.com. Now I am considering ChargeToday and maybe Capital Merchant Solutions. I simply want to find an honest credit card processor that is respectful of their customers in good and bad times. Why is that so difficult to find?
March 23rd, 2010 - 10:57
Hello All, I wanted to post a reply regarding the negative link from Ripoff Report, please read our rebuttal (using the same link).
Thank you,
Jason Douglass, Business Development Manager
Capital Merchant Solutions, Inc.
March 17th, 2010 - 13:48
I love Capital Merchant Services!
I am in a VERY high risk industry. To make things worse, I have horrible credit.
My current processor had shut my account off abruptly. I was doing everything right, they just no longer dealt with my industry type. In a panic I called Jeremiah from Capital Merchant Solutions as I was referred to him to help.
The bank didn’t want to approve my application due to my credit. Jeremiah and his team then when to bat for me and got me approved.
Honestly, I couldn’t believe it.
Then our volume started increasing rapidly and the bank didn’t want to raise our limit.
Again Capital Merchant Solutions went to bat and AGAIN they pulled off a miracle and got my limit DOUBLED.
Since that day they have approved me for a 2nd merchant account also. And again, this is for someone EVERYBODY said no to except for Capital Merchant Solutions.
I don’t do a lot of reviews. But in this case, this company saved my business. And I KNOW if they got me and my ridiculously impossible scenario approved, they can move mountains for others.
Great company, unbelievable service, miracle workers, and my heroes for sure.
March 24th, 2010 - 07:30
I want to thank Todd for his kind words. As a Senior Account Executive at Capital Merchant Solutions for the last 4 years, I have always tried to help all my clients to the best of my ability. Capital Merchant Solutions is dedicated to providing the best merchant services to a wide range of business types, from the Mom and Pop corner store to the high risk business types that most merchant processors don’t take. Todd’s business was definitely on the “high risk” side, and it brought me great pleasure fulfilling his needs, as well as exceeding his expectations.
Thank you,
Jeremiah Davis | Senior Account Executive
Capital Merchant Solutions, Inc.
March 19th, 2010 - 06:46
Worked with Brad Turner to set up the merchant account. I got to the point I felt like he did not have any other customers because he was always available whenever I needed him. Thanks Brad!
March 23rd, 2010 - 10:24
Thank you for reviewing our company, we are excited to have an honest appraisal of our services! Like you mentioned in your review, honesty is our policy and is the very foundation of our business. From day 1 we have focused on serving our customers with great service and pricing options. This has proven to be the formula to our success for nearly 13 years.
Part of your review lists our “Contract Duration” and “Cancellation Fee” which is accurate, however I did want to mention we are flexible with both. If either are issues with potential customers we are able to come up with an option that will best fit their needs. This has been our practice from the beginning
.
I really believe this a great tool for new and existing merchants to use in what is a challenging industry to find honest and reputable businesses to sign up with, so thank you Merchant Maverick!
Jason Douglas
Capital Merchant Solutions, Inc.
March 23rd, 2010 - 20:59
Jason,
Thanks for reaching out. I’m happy to see that someone from Capital Merchant Solutions is keeping an eye on your online reputation. To be honest, I knew you’d find it this review sooner rather than later. It seems you have your finger on the pulse…great to know.
May 28th, 2010 - 14:48
Id like to comment on this organization. After my account was closed due to the fact that we processed more funds then which was in my contract, which then considered a high risk, I called capital merchant solutions to ask why they kept charging my bank account over 1 year after the account was closed for fees.
The two ladies I spoke with, one who was an account manager, and the second who was apparently her supervisor, told me that they wouldn’t refund the fees and its not their fault the fees were being charged. Shocked, after they and first data canceled my account(when I did nothing wrong but went over my agreed upon contract in processing, what company wouldn’t want more sales??), why would you still be debiting my account for the fees? I said, you canceled my account, so why would I be responsible to pay fees on a canceled account?
So I told them that my bank was intending to reverse all the charges from the date of cancellation. I said I wanted to do it in a more civil way. Since I did not use the service from those dates, and since I did not myself cancel the account and break any contact, its only fair and right that you reverse the fees.
Her response to me was, “If you do that we will take you to court and sue you”
Wow! Talk about customer service. Brilliant! Suing a customer over about 170 dollars in charges. A. That would never happen. B. They actually hired someone who would say that to a customer?
I think this negative review will cost your company a little more then that. In this day and age, It boggles my mind that companies still think they can get away with awful customer service.
The moral of the the story is, when the going gets tough, do you want a company who is going to treat its cusotmer like this?
I would think twice about using this company. I would post the names and phone number of the people I spoke with, but I am not sure if its against the rules.
Cheers!