Frequently Asked Questions - Answers to the most common questions about Heartland Connect .
 
Contact Us - Here's how to send your comments, suggestions, and questions.
 
 
E-mail:
sales@e-hps.com
support@e-hps.com
 
 
Frequently Asked Questions:
 
Which bank cards does Heartland Connect accept?
Heartland Connect accepts Visa, MasterCard, American Express, Discover/Novus, Diner's Club/Carte Blanche, Japanese Credit Bureau, enRoute, debit cards and EBT (Electronic Benefit Transfer) cards.
 
What do I need to process credit card payments?
To accept credit card payments (online, offline, anywhere) you need a credit card Merchant Account.
 
What other payment methods does accept other than bank cards?
Heartland Connect also supports ACH. ACH stands for Automated Clearing House, but ACH transactions are better known as electronic checks . Market studies have shown that consumers still make more purchases with checks than with credit cards. By offering ACH as a payment option, you have the potential to greatly expand your revenues.

Heartland Connect also accepts Gift/Loyalty cards.
 
Can swipe card (or card present) transaction be processed?
Yes. Heartland Connect works with both Card Present and Card Not Present transaction. There are two types of transactions in the credit card payment world:
  • Card Not Present - on-line transactions where the merchant is not presented with a physical card nor a valid signature.
  • Card Present - almost all of the transactions in the retail world are Card Present transactions. In this setting, the merchant gets to swipe the card thru a magnetic stripe reader which reads the track data from the back of the card and sends it off to the bank for verification. The merchants are also required to verify the signature on the receipt against the one on the back of the card.
If the card is NOT present, as in the case of a MOTO (mail order, telephone order) or online transaction, and the cardholder asks for a chargeback on the grounds of fraud, the merchant doesn't get the money. If the case is an Internet order, then additional fees and limits apply -- besides a MOTO case.

On the other hand, in a Card Present transaction, if the merchant authorized the card and has a signature slip, the merchant keeps the money and the bank sucks it up (provided if the merchant can dig up the reciept and present it to the bank when the chargeback dispute comes in). Heartland Connect offers a complete end-to-end solution for signature/receipt/check image capture and retrieval system that completely eliminates this problem.
 
I already have a merchant account, can I still use Heartland Connect without changing my account?
Heartland Connect works with virtually every bank in the US, so chances are your bank is supported.
 
What is the average speed of a transaction?
Heartland Connect sends all transactions securly to the various payment processors via broadband (DSL, T1, T3, etc . . .) versus the traditional dial-up method. This results in transaction times ranging from 2-5 seconds. It also reduces the need to have a shared modem pool or individual phone lines for each register. Ultimately, this means happier customers, fewer errors, and more sales for you.
 
Do you have a web based interface?
Yes, Heartland Connect offers a powerful, easy-to-use web based interface that features merchant management, virtual terminals and extensive reports.
 
Do you support Recurring Billing, why do I want it anyway?
Heartland Connect offers a complete recurring billing (sometimes known as "subscription billing") system. Merchants can store customer billing information on Heartland Connect . A PNRef number will be created, which merchants can then use to run transactions and schedule future billings, or schedule billings which will repeat at a regular interval.

Recurring billing is useful even to merchants that don't necessarily require subscription billing. It allows merchants to store customer information in securly in the Heartland Connect database. The merchant need only keep track of the PNRef number.
 
Am I protected from fraud as a merchant?
Consumers are well-protected from online fraud by the zero-liability plans offered by their card issuers. But the merchant are not as according to the law in the United States. A few fraudulent purchases or chargebacks on your merchant account can lead to increased bank fees and even the revocation of your account.
 
What do you have to help me fight fraud?
Automatically included with all Heartland Connect accounts are basic fraud screening tools including AVS (address verification system), Visa's CVV2, Mastercard's CVC 2, and American Express' CID. These proven tools can filter out most online fraud, and are available to you at no extra cost.

However, the utlimate fraud fighting device is our Card Present transactions combined with signature/receipts/check images capture and retrieval. This will help you significantly reduce fraud and the risk of chargeback.
 
How secure is your system?
Proper security is difficult and time consuming, which is why many gateways shirk in their responsibility and take the "easy way out". Heartland Payment Systems believes in doing things right, and that means proper precautions must be taken. All communication (between your servers, Heartland Connect , the acquiring bank, and the issuing bank) are encrypted end-to-end with 1024-bit RSA public/private keypairs assuring server authenticity and invulnerability to man-in-the-middle attacks.
 
Does Heartland Connect use SSL encryption?
Yes. Our system runs in Secure Mode using SSL (Secure Sockets Layer) to encrypt all communication data.