Sending the 3 digit security code:
For extra security, we don't ask for your VCC2 number on line. (This is the set of 3 digits found on the back of your card, over the signature area...usually, the last four numbers of your account are reprinted first, followed by these three new numbers). Instead, we ask that you send us a separate e-mail, with just your name and the 3 digit number. This is completely useless to anyone else, but helps insure that your card really belongs to you and that your order is valid. We put your e-mail together with your order, and when your order is ready, we put the card through with the VCC2 number.
If for any reason you don't want to send the VCC2 number, we'll try to process your card without it. Some bank card issuers (your bank) may require the number for security, while others may not. If your bank won't accept the card without the security code, we'll contact you and see if you want to provide the number or talk to your bank about it. We would just as soon not have to ask for it, but it may be required by some banks. It is most often required for orders that come from other countries -- not by us, but by the issuing bank.
Please note that banks are charging a number of additional processing fees to merchants, adding an average of 3% to the cost of the sale. For unders under $100, the additional expense averages less than $3, which we adsorb. But orders of $100 and up would require that we either raise the price to all clients, or, more fairly, pass on the 3% average processing cost only to customers who use bank cards. Payments by check, cash, or money order do not cost any additional amount, so it seems unfair to raise prices to cover the ever-increasing card processing cost even for people who do not use card payment. We pass on the 3% processing fee ONLY for orders of $100 and up, and ONLY for orders paid by bank card (credit or debit).
For example, an order for $1500 paid using a typical bank card costs us an additional $45, which the card processing firm removes from our account automatically. An order for $10,000 costs us an additional $300 if paid by bank card. In order to keep prices as low as possible for all customers, the 3% processing fee is added only to orders for which it is charged (bank card orders). The so-called "rewards" and benefits that card brands provide for card users are an expense which, ultimately, is imposed on the seller and comes from the seller's income, but the seller has no option or control over how much the bank might decide to charge to pay for these user benefits. A bank card processing fee is a fair way to maintain reasonable prices for all customers.
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