Costco Connection

COSTCO SERVICES

Update

Huge cut
in payment
processing
rates and fees
BREAKING NEWS
MAY SPECIAL EVENT
Giving to kids while being
wise about insurance

To learn more about our complete suite of Costco services, click on the “Services” link at Costco.com or call toll-free 1-800-220-6000.

GOOD NEWS FOR members using the Costco merchant credit card processing service through Elavon. All users received a notice of rate and fee reductions in their recent billing statement. The amount of savings will vary between individuals.

This rate and fee cut is a result of the Durbin Amendment governing interchange fees, which went into effect last year. The amendment places caps on the fees that banks charge for debit card transactions.

CORBIS/AGE FOTOSTOCK

“Originally the Durbin Act was intended
for the end users,” says Bernie Deckys, Costco
Services manager. “Costco is keeping this
adjustment transparent by passing the savings
through, but we see that many of our com-
petitors are just taking the savings to margin.
Their end users are not seeing the savings.”
Individual merchants received a notice of
the rate and fee reduction on their March
month-end statements. For more details
about the changes, visit Costco.com and
search “Merchant,” or call customer service
toll free at 1-877-807-6239.

PAYMENT PROCESSING FAQ
What should I know
about PCI DSS?

DATA SECURITY has become a primary consideration for every business that accepts credit and debit cards as payment for goods or services. The major payment card brands— including Visa, MasterCard, American Express and Discover—have established the Payment Card Industry Council to oversee the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standards (PCI DSS), and to promote the security of the credit and debit card data presented into the payment systems.

If you are a merchant who accepts payment cards, you are required to be compliant with the PCI DSS. From the largest corporations to small Internet stores, compliance is vital because nothing is more important than keep-

PROGRAM EXPANDS Personal Health Insurance comes to Connecticut

THE COSTCO PERSONAL Health Insurance program has expanded to Connecticut, making the program now available for members in nine states: Arizona, Connecticut, Georgia, Illinois, Michigan, Nevada, Pennsylvania, Texas and Virginia.

This program offers members a strong
combination of valuable benefits, special
savings and helpful services tailored to
Costco members can get a quote or
apply for the program by going to
Costco.com and searching “Aetna,” or by
calling toll-free 1-888-370-6930.

Costco Personal Health Insurance plans are underwritten by Aetna Life Insurance Company directly and/or through an out-of-state group policy to members of Costco Wholesale. To the extent permitted by law, these plans are medically underwritten and you may be declined coverage in accordance with your health condition. Health insurance plans contain exclusions and limitations.

ing your customers’ payment card data secure. The size of a business determines the specific compliance requirements that must be met.

Enforcement of merchant compliance is managed by the individual payment brands, not by the council. (Visit www.pcisecuritystandards.org for resources and training materials.)

According to Bernie Deckys, Costco
Services manager, most of the other proces-
sors charge a fee for third-party verification of
data security compliance. “Costco does not
charge for it,” he says. “This is another exam-
ple where Costco has no hidden fees while
our competitors often do.”
For more information or
to open an account, call toll-
free 1-800-605-2488 and refer
to promotion code 83200,
or visit Costco.com and
search “merchant.”

s. “This is another exam-

SUBARU

LIMITED-TIME OFFER see page 97

All services are provided by third parties, may not be available in all areas and are subject to change without notice. Some restrictions apply. See “Services” at Costco.com for applicable terms and conditions.