Card surcharge ban used as ‘cover’ for larger price increases by Australian businesses, experts say

One online price tracker found 17% of cafes have increased coffee prices since the credit card surcharge ban began, with an average increase of more than 10%. Photograph: Simon McGill/Getty Images

Businesses are using the recent ban on credit card surcharges as “cover” to pass along much larger price increases to customers, experts say, as cafes and restaurants struggle to cope with climbing costs and rising interest rates.

Credit card surcharges, typically worth about 1.5% of the transaction, were banned from 1 October, as part of a Reserve Bank-led reform aimed at improving transparency for customers and, ultimately, lowering bank fees.