B&H needs to take on some responsibility. They promote the card right on the first page when you go to their site. They are enticing /steering customers to an apparently bad player. B&H has an excellent, well deserved, reputation. They should be more careful who they jump into bed with.

Looking back, B&H grew their business by attracting customers who wanted to avoid their own states sales tax. If those same folks had to pay that tax today they just might decide to shop at home. B&H provides great service, but $$$ speak loud.

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You either get a discount equal to the sales tax ( about 7%) , or low monthly interest over a year.

If you are financing a large equipment purchase then the low monthly payments will have a lower interest rate than most bank loans, and not tie up any existing lines of credit your company might have.

If you are buying equipment which is normally not discounted anywhere, they are in effect giving you a 7% discount off the item’s price. If you pay off the purchase in full inside a month ( roughly) you’ll have a considerable savings.

For example:
Try buying a $9000 Leica anywhere in the US and the price will be $9000 plus tax. Through B&H and payboo you pay an even $9000. They pay the $630 to NY out of their markup, and still make a profit without advertising a discounted price. I save that amount because I’m not charged sales tax. Actually, I save more ($855) than buying locally, because sales tax in my state is 9.5%, and the shipping is fast and free.

You are not really eliminating the tax. The state still gets its cut. But, by phrasing the purchase details in this manner, It may be the only way to save on buying Leica and other equipment from manufacturers who control the retail prices.

I don't believe it works this way at all, at least not completely. The retailer gets the full amount of the sale as invoiced (including the tax), and the retailer will submit the tax to the state, as required. The difference is absorbed by the credit card issuer as promotional or immediate "cash back" to the buyer. The refunds are funded by the exorbitant 30% interest charged on unpaid balances. That's 2.5% of each monthly unpaid balance. So anything not paid off within about three months gives the issuer his money back, and everything after that is profit. Major purchases probably maintain a balance for several months (or even years), so it's really good money for the bank issuing the card. The retailer remits the sales tax as required and shows invoices to the seller showing that he sold undiscounted product to the customer. All gains or losses accrue to the card company.

It is certainly possible that the agreement calls for the retailer to receive what I'd call royalties on the actual realized profits, but that would be a separate transaction down the road.

Bottom line...there is no way that this can be a good deal for both the buyer and the seller. It's more like gambling. The buyer is betting that he is going to pay off the purchase. The card company is betting that he won't. If there are too many buyer wins, the house will change the game.

The letter I received, states the following:
"Based on information provided during our recent communication, we are unable to approve your application for a B&H Payboo Credit Card for the following reason(s):"

"We were unable to verify your identity" This is totally absurd! The first sentence of the following paragraph states, "Our credit decision was based in whole or in part on information obtained in a report from the consumer reporting agency (EQUIFAX) listed below". The rest of the paragraph goes on to state, "under the Fair Credit Reporting Act", I have the right to know the information contained in my Equifax credit file. It further goes on to state, "that the reporting agency, (EQUIFAX) played NO part in our decision and is unable to supply specific reasons why we have denied credit to you". WHAT???? If the credit agency played no part in your decision, WHAT DID YOU BASE YOUR DECISION ON?? I find this reason contradictory and totally ABSURD!!

It further states, I have a right to a free copy of my (EQUIFAX) credit report if I request it no later than 60 days after this notice and if I find any information in the report to be inaccurate or incomplete I have the right to dispute the matter with (EQUIFAX) the reporting agency. Again, If the credit agency played no part in your decision, WHAT DID YOU BASE YOUR DECISION ON?? They, Comenity Bank fails to ever state a (specific) reason for the rejection. I find both (1) that no reason is offered for this decision and (2) that they were unable to verify my identity, simply OUTRAGEOUS! This clearly doesn't bode well for B&H and their partnership with this very questionable bank.