[Menge]

Well yes, collusion is grand.

Retail stores are happy to charge everyone 2% more that they can pocket if the customer isn't using amex as long as all the others will too. (They can't give a cash discount without violating the vendor terms and they shouldn't sell at a loss.)

Smaller businesses may offer you different terms verbally and other businesses will risk not having amex to have the lowest prices. But until amex is more like discover that carries brand risk instead of pure shame for the user.

[toomuchtodo]

> They can't give a cash discount without violating the vendor terms

Not true. US law not only allows merchants to provide a cash discount, they may now charge a surcharge specifically for using a payment card.

http://www.jstor.org/discover/10.2307/3203344?sid=2110533961...

http://www.washingtonpost.com/business/capitalbusiness/as-ru...

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/07/17/business/merchants-conside...

http://usa.visa.com/personal/get-help/checkout-fees.jsp

[abawany]

I believe the rules for this have changed and it is no longer illegal to suggest that using a charge card will result in a use fee: http://www.washingtonpost.com/business/capitalbusiness/as-ru... . Heck, even gas stations in my town now have two prices listed: one for using debit/cash and a higher one for using credit.