Why a “free rate review” from your processor is not independent

Your processor offers a free rate review. It sounds helpful. Someone who already has your account will “take a look” and tell you if everything looks good.

That is not an independent review. It is a conversation with the company that sets the markup and collects the monthly fees.

Trailblaze is on the other side of that line. We are not a processor. We do not take kickbacks. We do not require a switch, a new POS, or new equipment. Ryan Bates has about 15 years in payments. The first statement review is free, and it can end with “leave it.”

Who pays the reviewer?

Incentives matter.

When the reviewer is your processor (or a rep tied to that processor):

Keeping the account is the job

• “Looks good can mean “looks fine for us” • A problem often leads to a new product, a new schedule, or a reason to resign paperwork • Saying “you are already competitive, change nothing” does not grow their book. When the reviewer is independent: • The job is to read the statement you already get • Markup, junk, and non-negotiable network costs get separated in plain English • A fair account can be called fair • Negotiation, if any, is with the processor you already have. Same word (“review”). Different paycheck.

What a processor review usually optimizes for

It may be sincere. The rep may believe the pricing is fine. Belief is not the same as a third-party effective-rate check. Watch for: A review that never calculates effective rate (total cost ÷ card sales) A focus on one headline percentage instead of the full month An offer to “fix” things by moving you to a new program or dual pricing before anyone has opened the junk lines • Pressure to resign, rebundle, or add software you did not ask for. Not all rate reviews are created equal: https://www.trailblazeis.com/payment-truths/not-all-rate-reviews-are-created-equal. This post is the ownership test: if they bill you for processing, they are not a neutral auditor of that bill.

What independent actually looks like

Send one recent monthly statement. You should get: • Your effective rate for that month • Which lines look like processor markup or junk vs. interchange and network fees • A clear yes or no on whether talking to your current provider is worth it No required switch as the “solution”. How it works: https://www.trailblazeis.com/how-it-works How to save: https://www.trailblazeis.com/how-to-save-on-processing Already fair: https://www.trailblazeis.com/payment-truths/if-your-rates-are-already-fair Pricing $49: https://www.trailblazeis.com/pricing-monitoring Contingency vs $49: https://www.trailblazeis.com/payment-truths/contingency-vs-flat-fee-monitoring FAQ: https://www.trailblazeis.com/faq

You can still talk to your processor

Independent does not mean hostile.

If the statement shows room, the productive move is often a focused conversation with the processor you already have.

Keep the POS. Keep the MID. Push on what is actually negotiable.

Under contract: https://www.trailblazeis.com/payment-truths/under-contract-no-switch

Send a statement

One recent month. PDF, photo, or export. Free. Confidential. No spam blast to other reps. Fort Mill and the rest of the Carolinas, same process.

We do not guarantee savings. We do not sell processing. We tell you what the statement shows.

Send a statement: https://www.trailblazeis.com/statement-review