A credit card may be the easiest choice for a transaction, but it will cost students a bit more to use plastic when they add money to their Tiger Cards. The Tiger Card Office now charges students a 2.5 percent processing fee when they use a credit card to add money to their cards. Credit cards are no longer used in the office but are allowed online and at the Tiger Card kiosk that sits outside the office. Jorge Chinchilla, manager of the office, said the fee went into effect Aug. 5. Chinchilla said the Tiger Card Office made the decision to begin charging a fee to offset costs that the office is charged by credit card companies such as Visa and MasterCard. “We looked at what other offices like the Bursar’s Office and the Athletic Department were doing and followed their models,” Chinchilla said. A credit card processing fee is applied when students use their credit cards to pay their fee bills or buy football tickets online.
He said the Tiger Card Office began letting students know about the change immediately after it was implemented. “We tried our best to make everyone aware of the change at the [freshman] orientation,” Chinchilla said, adding that freshmen are more frequent users of Tiger Cash. A notice has been placed on the office’s Web site and kiosk. The office offers an alternative called Automated Clearing House that allows students to add money without being charged, Chinchilla said. ACH allows students to use their bank routing and bank account numbers to add money to their Tiger Cards. Chinchilla said ACH is free to students but still costs the Tiger Card Office money. ACH fees are less expensive for the office than credit card fees. He said the office has been receiving some feedback about the change. “It has not really been negative,” Chinchilla said. “Most people just want to know why we are doing it now and have never done it before.” Jena Mura, undecided freshman, said she does not mind the fee, because she “didn’t even notice” it. Noor Mehr, a biology freshman who frequents Tiger Card Kiosk, said she does not think the fee is a good idea, adding that she has heard other students complain about it as well. “It should be free to add money,” Mehr said. “Come on, we are college students.”
—–Contact Garesia Randle at grandle@lsureveille.com