Is there a law that all billing companies have to accept any form of payment?
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Is there a law that all billing companies have to accept any form of payment?
A billing company for a hospital sent me a bill for a co-pay. I do owe it, but they will not accept payment by my credit card. I thought there was a law that all billing companies had to accept any form of payment.
Asked on February 9, 2011 under Bankruptcy Law, Pennsylvania
Answers:
SJZ, Member, New York Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 13 years ago | Contributor
No, there is no law requiring a billing company to accept any sort of payment, except in certain very limited contexts, specified by law. (For example; in New Jersey, a landlord has to accept rent payment in any format and from any source, including by third parties on the behalf of the renter.) Otherwise, businesses and creditors are free to determine what sorts of payment they will accept, and as convenient as credit cards are, since the merchant or creditor is assessed a fee for accepting credit cards (meaning the merchant or creditor has to pay in order to be paid, reducing what they receive), it's not all that uncommon for them to decline to accept cards.
If you don't have the money in hand for the payment, one option is to take a cash advance against your credit card, then use that cash to get a bank check or money order.
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