{
  "id": 14124350,
  "title": "Card surcharge ban used as ‘cover’ for larger price increases by Australian businesses, experts say",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/13/card-surcharge-ban-used-as-cover-for-larger-price-increases-by",
  "topic": "finance",
  "section": "Finance & Markets",
  "published": "2026-10-13T05:13:19.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "The Guardian Australia",
    "slug": "the-guardian-australia",
    "url": "https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2026/oct/13/australia-surcharge-ban-credit-card-price-increases-business"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": null,
  "summary": "Experts say businesses are using the recent ban on credit card surcharges as \"cover\" to pass much larger price increases to customers. As cafes and restaurants deal with rising interest rates and climbing costs, some use \"round-up\" pricing on items like coffee, which suggests price hikes are exceeding the typical 1.5% surcharge fee.\n\nThe ban on credit card surcharges, which usually account for approximately 1.5% of a transaction, went into effect on 1 October. This change was part of a reform led by the Reserve Bank intended to increase transparency for customers and lower bank fees.",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 2,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "The Guardian",
        "title": "Card surcharge ban used as ‘cover’ for larger price increases by Australian businesses, experts say",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/13/card-surcharge-ban-used-as-cover-for-larger-price-increases-by-14125249",
        "published": "2026-10-13T05:13:19.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}