Vendor pushing for cash payments?

Is it for YOU to avoid taxes, or for HER?

Either way, it's weird. But if it's for her..that kind of speaks a lot from a business owner ethics standpoint.

I have been given discounts for paying in cash (presumably to avoid credit card fees), but the fact that she specifically told you that she wants cash to avoid paying taxes is super sketch.

Some smaller shops do try that because they can underreport cash income to pay less taxes on it. I would tell her that you are uncomfortable paying cash and that you will only pay with your credit card. You need protection if she doesn't do what she's supposed to.

I have been offered the same thing as tjacob. They said that they would give me a slight discount if I was paying with cash because it meant that they didn't have to pay credit card transaction fees. BUT not a single one of them pressured me to pay cash. They just offered it once and that was it. I would be weirded out if someone was pressuring me.

We are doing this with one of our vendors. This vendor said he could give us a small discount, which would save us a few hundred dollars. He didn't push for it though, just laid out the options. It is mutually beneficial as they save on processing fees and we save on presumably the tax. That being said, if you don't want to pay cash, don't let her pressure you into it.

I wad told at a florist that i either needed to pay cash or i had to pay a 3% fee for a cc because that is what they would have to pay. My venue is the same way. cash or check. If you use a CC you have to pay 3% extra

I've been offered a discount equal to the tax percentage for paying cash, but we still have a contract and get receipts every time we make a payment. We actually asked if we could get a discount, and this is what the vendor offered. It is sketchy for a vendor to insist on cash to avoid taxes rather than saying they prefer cash or something. If she accepts credit cards she needs to take yours. You didn't mention this, but if she wanted to charge you extra in addition to state sales tax for using a credit card, like a fee for credit card use, that is a violation of the merchant agreement.

Hmmm.... I don't like the sound of this.

No this is shady. My florist gave me a cash discount so that they didn't have to pay the credit card fees associated with running a visa and I was okay with that. Is this vendor even offering a discount for the cash payment? Otherwise, I wouldn't do it.

My florist who is a small business said wedding payments need to be cash or check, no cards. It's probably to avoid the cc fee they get charged. I'd like to think that's what she meant by taxes?

My florist doesn't take cards either. She prefers cash, but will also take checks if we have to mail the payment. She owns her own business, and we respect her preferences.

I would at least pay the balance with a check if you can, if she wont take a personal check at least then she is being super shady. like PP said she may be trying to avoid the cc fees.

eta: check as proof of payment if something would to happen.

eta2: its her job as a business owner to pay taxes, if the taxes really are the reason (no the CC fees) that she wants you to pay in cash i would not be comfortable with her business dealings.

First of all, it's illegal to charge extra to use a CC.

I wouldn't do cash unless YOU want to.

We don't do CC's because I don't want to pay the fee, (and I'm very upfront about that), but 90% of our payments are by check.

A lot of small businesses don't take cards because of the fees, but if a card was fine for your deposit, that means they take them. I would ask if she is offering a discount for cash and, if she does, that might be worth doing. I've saved a couple hundred dollars in discounts for paying cash. Just make sure to get receipts for everything and keep them. Don't let her charge you a fee for paying with your card.

That would leave a bad taste in my mouth, being pushed to pay via cash and hearing it's to avoid taxes. Not the kind of practice/reputation I would want as a business owner.

I travel alot for work, and this kind of reminds me of the taxi drivers who don't want to take credit cards, and get all upset at you when you insist you don't have cash. Its just to benefit them, but they cannot MAKE you pay in cash, in my opinion. If your florist wants to get paid, she'll take plastic if that's what you've got. I agree with PP - she is probably trying to avoid the cc fee.

It sounds fishy to me and would make me uncomfortable. If she offered once and you declined then okay, but the insisting part is very weird.

Yeah someone already said it either they don't want to report it on their taxes. CC fee's aren't so bad for me. Its like 9 bucks for a $250 deposit. But yeah, that's suspicious. As long as you get a receipt though its fine.

No. You need to be sure that tax is paid. If she wants to give you a discount equaling the tax because you paid cash, that's one thing. But to try to "avoid" taxes is illegal. Make sure you pay the tax.

Is it illegal everywhere to charge extra for CC fees? Or does it vary by CC company? Or by state? I feel like different CC companies have different contract agreements with businesses. Hence the reason a business may take Visa and MasterCard but not AmEx.

Anywho, what all the other PP said. sounds shady as fuck to me!!! Avoiding taxes, big no no. Taxes and death are the only things certain in life as they say. Even if charging extra for fees is illegal, she can theoretically raise all her prices by the amount of the fee, then offer a discount to those paying in cash. But that is different than "avoiding taxes" and I think a business owner would be *very* careful not to confuse those words.