According to the authority’s suspicions, the company that provides the cashless payment system for festivals, events and catering establishments – despite previous fines – engages in unfair practices in the process of tip selection at the stations, which forces consumers to make additional decisions.
Such that inform usGVH fined the company HUF 20 million at the end of 2019 for using a 10 per cent tip as default on its payment terminals. At the time, the competition authority said it was impermissible psychological pressure always adding 10 per cent to the amount to be paid if the customer did not adjust it.
At the end of 2021, GVH started another action against the company, and a fine of HUF 6 million was imposed for continuing the unfair practice despite the official ban, that is, the system still offers a 10 percent tip option as a default.
They can illegally force consumers
The just-launched Competition Authority measures are once again examining the fairness of the tip selection process for card payments at company terminals, where the provider is likely to be – particularly with regard to typical timing, location and nature of terminal use to illegally induce consumers to make decisions based on Their original decision regarding transactions (such as food and drink – and gift shopping) above – the authority announced On his website.
The system’s visual design, font size, and pre-set information (eg, “Please set tip amount: 0-20 percent”) can prevent consumers from making an independent and unaffected decision.
GVH emphasized that the commencement of competition supervision procedures does not mean that the company has committed a violation. The competition authority has three months to conduct the procedure, and it can be extended twice, each time with a maximum of two months.
