OP72.02

OP 72.02: Charge Card Sales by University Departments

DATE: December 14, 1995

PURPOSE: The purpose of this Operating Policy and Procedure (OP) is to establish policy and procedures for acceptance of charge cards by University departments for sales and services.

REVIEW: This OP will be reviewed on August 1 of odd-numbered years by the Director of Accounting Services (DAS) with recommendations for change forwarded through administrative channels to the Vice President for Fiscal Affairs (VPFA).

POLICY/PROCEDURE

1. Authority to Accept Charge Cards

Departments authorized to sell to the public and who wish to accept charge cards for sales and services shall submit a written request to the Associate Vice President for Business Affairs and Comptroller (AVPBAC). This request shall include the intended use of the cards, how the acceptance of the cards will benefit the department, the estimated annual volume of charge card sales, and the number of imprinters required.
Upon approval, the AVPBAC will forward the request to the Assistant Vice President for Investments (AVPI). The AVPI will make arrangements with a contractor for the credit card processing service.
The AVPI shall obtain the necessary credit card equipment and supplies and forward such to the departments upon receipt. Cost of equipment, including credit card terminals and printers, will be the responsibility of the requesting department.

2. Acceptance of Charge Cards

Master Card, Visa and Discover cards are the only cards which may be accepted by departments. Departments that have prior approval of the Vice President for Fiscal Affairs may accept American Express. The credit card machines must be programmed to accept American Express after approval is received from the VPFA.

Departments that have electronic credit card terminals and printers should enter card information as per instructions provided to each terminal. Authorization or rejection of the credit card charges will be automatic and appropriate sales slip or credit slip will be printed by the credit card machines.
Departments that do not have enough credit card business to justify an electronic terminal may still take credit cards by completing manual credit card forms. See Section 3.a. below for processing procedures through the Investments Office.

3. Completion of Manual Sales Slip and Credit Memo

All manual credit card forms must be processed through the Investments Office located in Room 139, Drane Hall. The Investments Office will enter information from the manual credit card slips through an electronic terminal and provide a summary of the credit card sales to be used to make a deposit at the Bursar's Office.
The following procedures will be followed in completing the Visa/MasterCard sales slip (Attachment A), and the Discover Card sales slip (Attachment B).
1. On the sales slip, write the date of the sale or set the date wheel on the imprinter, describe the merchandise or service rendered and show the total amount, including tax.
2. Process the sales slip through the imprinter.
3. Obtain card authorization using the 1-800 phone numbers provided by the credit card processing company via the Investments Office.
4. If the card is rejected by the processor, you may be asked to retain the card. Follow the processor's instructions carefully if you are asked to retain the card.
5. Have the customer sign the sales slip and check it for legibility of all required information.
6. Return the card and the cardholder's copy of the sales slip. The merchant's copy of the sales slip should be presented to the Investments Office in Drane Hall for electronic processing.
If the cardholder is to receive credit for merchandise returned or exchanged, the red credit memo (Attachment C) or the Discover Card credit slip (Attachment D) will be prepared using the same general procedures for completing the sales slip (see 3. b ).

4. Taking Credit Card Sales by Telephone

Credit cards may be taken by telephone. You must get the customer's name, credit card number, expiration date of the card, and the amount of the sale. You should also get a telephone number to contact the customer if there is a problem.
Double check all the information required on the credit card sales slip and if you are using a manual sales slip to record the sale before entering the sale electronically, be sure that all numbers and amounts are clear.

5. Preparing Bank Deposits

At the time of close-out of the terminals, each department should generate a sales summary of credit card sales. Any sales made after the terminals are closed out must be deposited with the next day's business or close-out. Departments that do not have terminals must get their sales summary from the Investments Office when their manual credit card slips are processed.
The sales summary white copy should match the amount on the Departmental Deposit Information Sheet (DDIS). The white copy of the sales summary is to be attached to the DDIS form when making a deposit. The department should retain the yellow copy of the sales summary and retain the copies of the sales slips signed by customers.
When completing the DDIS form, credit card totals must be entered on the appropriate line.

6. Recording of Discount

At the end of each month, the University's depository bank will charge a discount fee for all the credit card transactions during the month.
The DAS will prepare journal vouchers (JV) to charge each department for the discount fee incurred by the department for its credit card sales.

7. Chargeback of Charge Cards

The following procedures will be followed to record charge card deposits charged back by the bank:

Charge-backs are included in the monthly statements received from the credit card contractor. The DAS will prepare a JV to charge the appropriate department for the charge-back. It is the responsibility of the department to collect the charge-back amount from the card holder.
If the charge-back is re-deposited, it must be entered electronically and deposited in the same manner as all other credit card deposits.
If the charge-back is collected in cash, a Departmental Deposit Information Sheet (DDIS) must be completed. This will be entered as a cash transaction and not a credit card transaction.