Terms of Service

Effective Date: September 3, 2026
Last Updated: September 11, 2026
Website: https://themerchantmanual.com (“The Merchant Manual”, “I”, “me”, or “my”)
Contact: admin@themerchantmanual.com

Please read these Terms of Service (“Terms”) carefully before using The Merchant Manual website located at https://themerchantmanual.com (the “Service”).

By accessing or using the Service, you agree to be bound by these Terms. If you disagree with any part of the Terms, you must not access the Service.

1. Informational & Educational Purposes Only (Not Financial or Legal Advice)

The content provided on The Merchant Manual is for general informational, educational, and editorial purposes only.

  • No Professional Advice: Nothing published on this website constitutes legal, accounting, tax, or formal financial advisory services.
  • Rapid Industry Changes: Payment processing rules, interchange rate tables, card brand regulations (Visa, Mastercard, Discover, American Express), and state/federal surcharging statutes change frequently. While I strive to keep information accurate and up-to-date, I make no warranties regarding completeness or ongoing accuracy.
  • Consult Your Own Professionals: You should always consult with your certified accountant (CPA), legal counsel, and direct merchant processing provider before signing contracts, altering pricing models, implementing surcharge programs, or making business-critical financial decisions.

2. Affiliate Disclosure & Commercial Relationships

In compliance with Federal Trade Commission (FTC) guidelines:

  • The Merchant Manual may contain affiliate links, sponsored mentions, or referral partnerships.
  • If you click an affiliate link and open an account, purchase equipment, or sign up for a service, I may receive financial compensation or referral commissions at zero extra cost to you.
  • I remain committed to objective, honest reporting. My editorial opinions are my own and are not dictated by affiliate partners or advertisers.

3. Limitation of Liability

To the fullest extent permitted by applicable law, The Merchant Manual and its author shall not be liable for any direct, indirect, incidental, consequential, special, or punitive damages arising out of:

  • Your use of or inability to use the Service or its content.
  • Any financial losses, processing fee disputes, equipment lease obligations, batch settlement errors, or account fund freezes experienced by your business.
  • Any actions taken based on tutorials, checklists, or scripts provided on this site.
  • Any errors, omissions, or inaccuracies in my guides or articles.

Your use of any information or materials on this website is entirely at your own risk.

4. Intellectual Property

All content, articles, logos, graphics, guides, and text published on The Merchant Manual are my intellectual property unless otherwise stated.

  • You may quote excerpts or link to my articles provided clear attribution and a clickable link back to themerchantmanual.com are included.
  • You may not republish, scrape, or redistribute full articles without prior written permission.

5. User Submissions & Statement Audits

If you submit comments, questions, or redacted merchant processing statements to me via email or contact forms:

  • You grant me a non-exclusive license to reference, analyze, or discuss the general, non-identifying details in future educational content.
  • Your Responsibility: You must redact all personally identifiable information (business legal name, physical address, bank routing/account numbers, and Merchant Identification Numbers / MIDs) before submitting any financial documents to me.

My articles frequently link to external third-party websites (such as card brand rulebooks, government statutes, payment gateways, or hardware vendors). I have no control over the content, terms, or privacy policies of any third-party websites and assume no responsibility for them.

7. Modifications to Terms

I reserve the right to revise or replace these Terms at any time. Material updates will be reflected on this page with an updated “Last Updated” date. Your continued use of the website following any changes constitutes your acceptance of the new Terms.

8. Contact Me

If you have questions regarding these Terms of Service, please contact me at:
Email: admin@themerchantmanual.com