Bicycle Shops
Retail of bicycles, parts and accessories.
What MCC 5940 covers
Merchant Category Code 5940 is the ISO 18245 identifier used by the card networks for bicycle shops. Acquirers, issuers and regulators use this code to set interchange, scheme fees, fraud rules and reporting categories for every transaction your business processes.
Retail of bicycles, parts and accessories. Choosing the right MCC is critical: an incorrect code can lead to higher interchange, surcharges, or, in regulated categories, declined transactions and account holds.
Merchants in MCC 5940 operate bicycle shops, selling bicycles, accessories, and offering repair services. These can range from small local independents to larger chains with online presences.
Ticket sizes vary significantly: accessories might be under £50, while a high-end bicycle can easily exceed £5,000.
Transaction frequency is moderate, with seasonal peaks during warmer months. Fraud rates are generally low, with most transactions occurring in-person.
Online sales of higher-value items like e-bikes or premium road bikes are more susceptible to fraud. Chargebacks are typically due to 'Service Not Rendered' for repairs, 'Merchandise Not as Described' for online bicycle sales, or 'Damaged Goods' upon delivery.
Scheme rules do not impose specific programmes on bicycle shops. Merchants should focus on accurate product fulfilment and clear service agreements.
Cardflo's ability to facilitate both in-store (POS) and online payments seamlessly, along with detailed transaction tracking, supports these diverse merchant operations.
Acquirer & underwriting stance
Low-risk standard board. Fraud levels are generally manageable, particularly with a strong in-store presence.
No specific reserves are typically required, though online-heavy models for high-value bikes may warrant a closer look at fraud prevention measures.
How Cardflo handles MCC 5940
- Underwriting with acquirers that actively board MCC 5940 businesses in your region.
- MCC review during onboarding to confirm the right code for your products.
- Reclassification support if scheme rules or product mix change post-launch.
- Multi-acquirer routing to keep approvals stable for broad merchant categories.
- Dispute support tuned to the mixed-product chargeback profile this MCC sees.
Payment methods typically enabled
Common questions
What fraud prevention measures are essential for online bicycle sales, especially for expensive models?
For high-value online bicycle sales, merchants should always mandate 3D Secure (3DS). Verifying shipping addresses against billing addresses and conducting manual reviews for orders flagged by fraud tools are critical.
Using reputable, tracked shipping services and requiring a signature upon delivery also mitigates 'merchandise not received' disputes.
How do subscription services for bike rentals or maintenance impact payment processing for MCC 5940?
Subscription models for bike rentals or maintenance require robust recurring billing capabilities. Merchants need to securely store customer card details (PCI compliant tokenisation) and manage billing cycles, failed payments, and customer cancellations efficiently.
Cardflo's recurring billing features and account updater services help maintain high approval rates for subscriptions.
Are there specific interchange categories that frequently apply to bicycle shop transactions?
Most bicycle shop transactions will fall under standard retail interchange categories. Card-present sales will benefit from lower rates.
For online or card-not-present transactions, particularly those without 3DS, higher interchange rates may apply due to increased fraud risk. Implementing 3DS or tokenisation can help merchants qualify for better rates.
Other MCCs in Miscellaneous Stores
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