Payment processing for auto repair and services
High average tickets, deposits on big jobs, and fleet cards. At these amounts the percentage rate is what matters.
Auto work inverts the restaurant problem. When a ticket is eighteen hundred dollars, a fixed per-transaction fee is noise and the percentage rate is everything. A quarter of a percent on a job that size is four and a half dollars, and it repeats on every job.
Large tickets also attract more scrutiny: authorization holds, split payments across cards, deposits taken before parts are ordered, and the occasional dispute from a customer unhappy with the work. Each has a correct way to be handled.
Where auto services usually lose money
Percentage rate on large tickets
At four-figure invoices, a small difference in markup is real money per job. This is where interchange-plus pricing pays for itself fastest.
Deposits before parts are ordered
Taking a deposit and then the balance weeks later needs the right authorization approach, or the second charge gets declined.
Fleet and commercial cards
Fleet and corporate cards carry different interchange and can qualify for Level 2 data. Most providers will not set this up for you.
Disputes over completed work
Signed authorizations, documented approvals, and itemized receipts are what win a chargeback on a repair. The POS should capture them.
Split and partial payments
Customers often split a large repair across two cards or add financing. Your terminal should handle that without a workaround.
What I would set up for a business like yours
Rate and statement analysis
Send your last processing statement and get a line-by-line breakdown of what you pay today and what it should cost.
POS and in-person payments
Clover, MicroSale, and standalone terminals configured for how your business actually runs.
Online and virtual terminal
Gateway, shopping cart, and keyed payment setup with fraud tools and Level 2 and 3 processing.
PCI compliance and security
Get compliant, stay compliant, and stop paying non-compliance fees you did not know you were being charged.
Other industries I work with
Many owners run more than one kind of business. These cover the rest.
Restaurants and bars
Full-service restaurants, Bars and breweries, Cafes and coffee shops
Retail and specialty shops
Boutiques and apparel, Gift and home goods, Specialty food and beverage
Salons and spas
Hair salons and barbershops, Nail salons, Day spas and med spas
Professional services
Accounting and bookkeeping, Law firms, Dental and medical practices
Trades and field services
HVAC and plumbing, Electrical and solar, Landscaping and tree service
E-commerce and online
Direct-to-consumer brands, Subscription boxes, Digital products and downloads
Hard-to-place businesses
Newly opened businesses, High average ticket and future delivery, Businesses with prior account closures
See what auto services should be paying
Send your most recent statement and I will come back with your effective rate, every fee explained, and a straight comparison. No obligation either way.
Free. No obligation. Reply within one business day.
How the analysis works
- Send your most recent processing statement
- I calculate your effective rate and break down every fee
- You get a written comparison, and decide from there
Most come back within one business day. Monday to Friday, 8am to 6pm. Texts answered most evenings.