Members and employees of California Bear Credit Union were takenaback when retailers refused to accept their credit union's debitcards and requested they use major bank payment cards.

The reason? Their debit cards' expiration months were within thenext 30 days.

That's according to the Los Angeles-based, $107.6 million creditunion's president/CEO, Robert York.

On Nov. 18, York sent an e-mail to a group of fellow creditunion CEOs and the California and Nevada Credit Union Leaguesstating that retailers told Cal Bear CU members and two Cal Bear CUemployees they would not accept debit cards that were within 30days of their expiration months.

LA Fitness and Regal Cinemas rejected the two Cal Bear CUemployees' debit cards, and both companies asked the employees forpayment cards from major banks instead, York said in hise-mail.

“The fact that they refused to accept a card from a small issuerto collect payment and then immediately asked my employees for acard from a 'big bank' means they are trying to get around thesmall issuer provisions in the Durbin amendment,” York wrote.

Debit transactions from institutions of below $10 billion inassets are not subject to the 21 cent cap imposed in October.

“I don't know how widespread this form of card discrimination isbut the fact that two of my employees had similar experiences justrecently concerns me,” he continued. “We need to be diligent inmonitoring, sharing and reporting these instances to the CCUL andthe PAC so that they can make sure that these stories are heard bythe lawmakers and the Fed.

“We also need to educate our members and let them know that itis illegal for retailers to refuse to accept their credit uniondebit card for any reason other than the fact that the funds tomake the purchase are unavailable.”

In a written statement to Credit Union Times, York saidthe California and Nevada Credit Union Leagues advised his CU toreport all “debit card steering” incidents to Congress and theFederal Reserve.

League President/CEO Diana Dykstra reminded the credit unionthat the League has a vehicle for reporting debit card steeringincidents on its website, and that in order for complaints to bedirected in aggregate to Visa and MasterCard, CU CEOs shouldmaintain a single point of contact at the companies, York said.

Cal Bear CU's front line and phone center staff is takingreports of debit card steering and “encouraging members to stand upfor their right to use the debit card of their choice to makepurchases,” York said in the statement.

The credit union's report comes on the heels of the National Retail Federation's suing of the Federal Reserve inprotest of the agency's debit card swipe fee rules and twocongressmen's filing of a bill to repeal the Durbin amendment.