Central Payment

• Processing services
• ShopKeepPOS
• PayHub online gateway
• SpotOn

Central Payment provides services to the retail, mobile, eCommerce, and mail order/telephone order industries. They have an average amount of features; however, the features they do offer are the ones that are the most essential when it comes to effective day-to-day business operations.

Processing Services

Central Payment allows you to accept debit cards and credit cards such as Visa, MasterCard, AMEX, Discover and more.  And they state their processing services cost less than the competition. Central Payment also makes wireless transactions simple with their Verifone Vx680. Their wireless terminals are transaction-ready, as well as fast and flexible. So you can take them wherever you go. You can easily use them with your Apple or Android device, through their CPAY mobile app. Just swipe, capture a signature and you're done. Simplicity and convenience are extremely important when it comes to getting your customers from swipe to done and on their way quickly.

ShopKeepPOS

Central Payment's ShopKeepPOS offers simple POS systems that are user-friendly, easy to setup and compatible with all your business operations. You can scan barcodes, accept cash or credit and print or email receipts all with their cloud-based security.  This system makes it easier to train employees and comes with an extensive suite of simple to understand reports.  There's nothing worse than trying to train your employees on a new complex system as this can create a domino effect of mistakes for months on end. Therefore, this is a huge plus in our book.

PayHub Online Gateway

Central Payment's PayHub gateway is essential for anyone with an online presence. This system will allow you to accept electronic payments online and will help extend your reach to a worldwide audience. You can process credit cards, track revenue and use their unique hosted eCommerce solution to turn your existing website into an eCommerce site with little effort from you. This is an exceptional feature for any business owner who doesn't want to spend hours of frustration trying to set up a new system or pay a developer thousands of dollars.

SpotOn

The SpotOn feature is unique to Central Payment. It turns you into an instant social media expert. Easily connect your business with customers on social media websites, mobile messaging, and set up a loyalty program while Central Payment handles all the technical aspects. All you have to do is log on and begin engaging with your customers. This feature also offers real-time analytics that will show you what's working and what's not, all from the SpotOn dashboard.

• Issues with independent sales agents
• Additional fees

Issues with Independent Sales Agents

Central Payments does not appear to use any deceptive marketing tactics; however, many of their complaints stem from their use of independent sales agents who are providing incorrect quotes and not disclosing important terms and fees of the contract. As mentioned above, Central Payments does use independent resellers, which can cause an increase in complaints due to unethical business practices by those resellers, and it appears that is the case here. The most common complaint is due to hidden fees. However, if you thoroughly read the contract and consider any and all terms and fees before you make your final decision, there shouldn't be any surprises. Additionally, Central Payment appears to make every effort to reach out to people who have complained on public forums with an offer to help resolve their issues. And that's a win for them because it shows they care and are trying to keep everyone happy.

Additional Fees

Central Payment has a long list of fees you need to be aware of, such as a sliding scale of early termination fees that depend on where you are in the contract to calculate those fees. The fees begin at $550, if you cancel within the first year, then it goes down to $375 and then down to $300 after that. They also charge a setup fee, an annual PCI compliance fee, a monthly minimum fee and a statement fee, all in addition to their tiered pricing. Oftentimes these fees can be negotiated, so it doesn't hurt to try. However, if you get any of those fees waived, you need to make sure you receive a signed contract waiver as proof of those agreements.

Unknown service costs

Central Payment essentially offers no information on their website pertaining to the price of services. This puts them in a negative light in comparison to other companies that are much more upfront with information. This also makes us at BestCompany nearly unable to rate them.