Private Investigator Payment Processing
The best one we’ve found so far
Over the last few months we’ve seen several different PI Companies have their accounts frozen by PayPal or have their income placed on hold for up to 60 years due to “large irregular payments”. The reason this happens in the PI Industry has to do with the volatility of the income. One month you can make $1,500 the next you could make $9,000. PayPal sees this as risky business – at any time someone can put in a charge back and if the money is not available, PayPal can lose a lot of money. It’s not only a problem for private investigators, it’s a problem for any service provider; wedding planners being the highest victims.
A few of our clients have called us asking for recommendations on different payment processing options, ways to get paid affordably, and ways to have people pay directly over the phone or through a link on their website.
In the past, we referred people to PayPal or Stripe then installed “pay now” buttons on their pages. The only issue is that PayPal and Stripe both charge upwards of 2.7%+.30 cents per transaction. Meaning that they keep $3 for every $100 that you process through their system. If the client is not present (which most of the time they are not) you are able to run the credit card using a virtual terminal for a slightly larger fee – 3.5% sometimes as high as 5.7% depending on the “risk” your company has. These little fees and micro-transactions can really add up. One of our clients was paying $130 per month in credit card processing fees. Not a lot, but definitely enough to feel it at the end of the year. ($1,390) That’s enough for a month’s salary on a par time investigator.
Outside of PayPal and Stripe, we didn’t have any real experience. We started to talk to a few different PI’s who used different merchant services. The most popular one was Authorize.net, which turned out to be a pretty good choice for most people. The only problem is that Authorize.net can get expensive if you make $5,000 or less on the monthly basis.
Earlier in the year we found a company in Texas that offers integrated merchant solutions. (Click here for their website) I’m sure there are many like it, but this is the only one that we vetted. The company allows you to take credit card payments over the phone, swipe the card in person, and even send out invoices over e-mail with a link to accept online credit card payments. If you use Quickbooks, the system also integrates with your Quickbooks account to help you out during tax season.
All in all, the company has been great to the different clients that we have referred to them. I’ve linked to their video in the section below to show you how the platform works and what they offer.
If you’re looking for a way to process payments, I would give them a call and see what they have to offer. The company is relatively small, but they offer services to hundreds of companies from Texas to New York.
IMS is no different than Authorize.net or any other credit card processing company, the only advantage that you have is the ability to negotiate rates and services since you’ll be talking directly with the owner – the company is small enough to reach him but big enough to supply your needs. If I’m not mistaken, they don’t have long term contracts (Don’t quote me on that one).
Like most PI Companies that have the power to negotiate surveillance rates, small to medium sized processing companies have the ability to negotiate rates with their clients. Major players that offer a flat fee don’t allow negotiations because they sell in bulk – Ever tried to negotiate a discount on a camera from Best Buy? You’ll have a better shot from a small/local business.
If you don’t want to use PayPal or Stripe and need a way to invoice your clients, I would recommend to do some research for credit card processing companies near your area. Be cautious of the rates, and try to avoid long term contracts.
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