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Credit card interchange is a fee averaging close to 2 percent that Visa and MasterCard banks charge merchants each time one of their cards is swiped to make a purchase. These "swipe" fees are imposed on merchants on a take-it-or-leave it basis, and have have soared dramatically in recent years. In 2008, U.S. retailers and consumers paid an estimated $48 billion for interchange, or triple the $16 billion charged when NRF began tracking the fee in 2001. The fees drive up the price of merchandise, costing the average American household $427 in 2008, up from $159 in 2001.

NRF OSHA Documents Feb 2010