Author: The Card Machine Queen

Payment Links UK: How to Take a Card Payment Without a Machine (2026)

Small business owner taking a card payment with a payment link instead of a card machine

In short: a payment link is a secure web link you send by text, email or WhatsApp so a customer can pay you by card without a machine or a website. It suits deposits, remote jobs and phone orders. Because the card is not physically present, it counts as a card-not-present payment, so it usually […]

Card Machine Statement Explained: What Every Fee Means

Card machine statement on a desk with a pen, showing merchant fees being reviewed by a small business owner

Written by Zoe Bordiuk, Independent Payment Consultant Honest, independent guidance for UK small businesses • Last updated: 17/07/2026 You opened your card machine statement, looked at the total, winced, and closed it again. Most of the business owners I speak to do exactly that every month. Not because the numbers are beyond them, but because […]

Best card machine for a café in the UK (2026)

Café owner taking a contactless payment using a portable card machine

In short: the right card machine for a UK café comes down to how you serve (counter or table), how fast you need the money to land, and how flexible your contract is, not which device has the shiniest screen. If your staff take card tips in England, Scotland or Wales, there is also a […]

Salon deposits and no-shows: how to take them by card

Modern salon reception with an orange card machine used to take appointment deposits

Salon deposits and no-shows: how to take them by card html,body{margin:0;padding:0;background:#f5f0e8}*{box-sizing:border-box} Salon deposits and no-shows: how to take them by card Every no-show is a chair that earned nothing, and by the time you have rung round the waiting list the slot has gone cold. Taking a deposit or holding a card fixes most of […]

Best card machine for tradespeople UK (2026): what actually matters on the job

Tradesperson accepting a contactless card payment from a customer at their home

Best card machine for tradespeople UK (2026): what actually matters on the job Written by Zoe Bordiuk Independent Payment Consultant Honest, independent card payment advice for UK small businesses In short: Most guides tell tradespeople to pick the card machine with the lowest advertised rate. That is the wrong question. The right one is which […]

Card machine fees explained: what UK businesses actually pay

Card machine fees explained for UK small businesses

Card machine fees explained: what UK businesses actually pay Written by Zoe Bordiuk Independent Payment Consultant Honest, independent card payment advice for UK small businesses ♚ In short Card machine fees are made up of three layers: the interchange fee (paid to the customer’s bank and capped by regulation for consumer cards), the scheme fee […]

Chair rent and card payments: the HMRC trap salons miss

Written by Zoe Bordiuk Independent Payment Consultant Honest, commission-free guidance for UK small businesses • Last updated: June 2026 In short A chair renter normally needs card payments going into their own account, not the salon’s. You can share one salon machine, but only if each person’s takings are kept separate and traceable. HMRC’s May […]

Do I have to accept card payments in the UK?

Small business owner turning away a card payment at the counter

Written by Zoe Bordiuk Independent Payment Consultant Honest, commission-free guidance for UK small businesses • Last updated: 23/06/2026 ♚  In short: the direct answer No UK law requires your business to accept card payments. You can legally trade cash-only, card-only, or both. But the practical picture is very different: debit cards now account for more […]

Is It Legal to Charge a Card Fee? UK Rules for 2026

Contactless card payment machine with legal and compliance symbols for UK card fee rules

Written by Zoe Bordiuk Independent Payment Consultant Honest, commission-free guidance for UK small businesses • Last updated: June 2026 In short (Direct Answer) No, UK card surcharge rules make it illegal to charge a consumer extra for paying by debit card, credit card, or wallets like Apple Pay. This ban has applied since 13 January […]

How to Tell if Your Card Machine Is Costing You More Than It Should

Is your card machine costing you more than it should? Signs to check for UK small businesses

Is your card machine costing you more than it should? Written by Zoe Bordiuk Independent Payment Consultant Honest, independent card payment advice for UK small businesses ♚ In short The signs that a card machine setup is not working in your favour are usually hiding in plain sight: a statement you cannot read, a contract […]

Cookie Policy

Effective Date: 30-Nov-2023
Last Updated: 30-Nov-2023

 
What are cookies?

This Cookie Policy explains what cookies are and how we use them, the types of cookies we use i.e, the information we collect using cookies and how that information is used, and how to manage the cookie settings.

Cookies are small text files that are used to store small pieces of information. They are stored on your device when the website is loaded on your browser. These cookies help us make the website function properly, make it more secure, provide better user experience, and understand how the website performs and to analyze what works and where it needs improvement.

 
How do we use cookies?

As most of the online services, our website uses first-party and third-party cookies for several purposes. First-party cookies are mostly necessary for the website to function the right way, and they do not collect any of your personally identifiable data.

The third-party cookies used on our website are mainly for understanding how the website performs, how you interact with our website, keeping our services secure, providing advertisements that are relevant to you, and all in all providing you with a better and improved user experience and help speed up your future interactions with our website.

 
Types of Cookies we use
 
Manage cookie preferences
Cookie Settings

You can change your cookie preferences any time by clicking the above button. This will let you revisit the cookie consent banner and change your preferences or withdraw your consent right away.

In addition to this, different browsers provide different methods to block and delete cookies used by websites. You can change the settings of your browser to block/delete the cookies. Listed below are the links to the support documents on how to manage and delete cookies from the major web browsers.

Chrome: https://support.google.com/accounts/answer/32050

Safari: https://support.apple.com/en-in/guide/safari/sfri11471/mac

Firefox: https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/clear-cookies-and-site-data-firefox?redirectslug=delete-cookies-remove-info-websites-stored&redirectlocale=en-US

Internet Explorer: https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/topic/how-to-delete-cookie-files-in-internet-explorer-bca9446f-d873-78de-77ba-d42645fa52fc

If you are using any other web browser, please visit your browser’s official support documents.

Privacy Policy


Last Updated On 30-Nov-2023
Effective Date 30-Nov-2023



This Privacy Policy describes the policies of Zoe Borduik, TA/Card Machine Queen email: hello@cardmachinequeen.co.uk phone: 07444 458 367 on the collection, use and disclosure of your information that we collect when you use our website ( https://cardmachinequeen.co.uk ). (the “Service”). By accessing or using the Service, you are consenting to the collection, use and disclosure of your information in accordance with this Privacy Policy. If you do not consent to the same, please do not access or use the Service.

We may modify this Privacy Policy at any time without any prior notice to you and will post the revised Privacy Policy on the Service. The revised Policy will be effective 180 days from when the revised Policy is posted in the Service and your continued access or use of the Service after such time will constitute your acceptance of the revised Privacy Policy. We therefore recommend that you periodically review this page.

  1. Information We Collect:

    We will collect and process the following personal information about you:

    1. Name
    2. Email
    3. Mobile

  2. How We Use Your Information:

    We will use the information that we collect about you for the following purposes:

    1. Marketing/ Promotional
    2. Testimonials
    3. Customer feedback collection
    4. Support
    5. Administration info
    6. Manage customer order
    7. Manage user account

    If we want to use your information for any other purpose, we will ask you for consent and will use your information only on receiving your consent and then, only for the purpose(s) for which grant consent unless we are required to do otherwise by law.

  3. How We Share Your Information:

    We will not transfer your personal information to any third party without seeking your consent, except in limited circumstances as described below:

    1. Analytics

    We require such third party’s to use the personal information we transfer to them only for the purpose for which it was transferred and not to retain it for longer than is required for fulfilling the said purpose.

    We may also disclose your personal information for the following: (1) to comply with applicable law, regulation, court order or other legal process; (2) to enforce your agreements with us, including this Privacy Policy; or (3) to respond to claims that your use of the Service violates any third-party rights. If the Service or our company is merged or acquired with another company, your information will be one of the assets that is transferred to the new owner.

  4. Retention Of Your Information:

    We will retain your personal information with us for 90 days to 2 years after user terminate account or for as long as we need it to fulfill the purposes for which it was collected as detailed in this Privacy Policy. We may need to retain certain information for longer periods such as record-keeping / reporting in accordance with applicable law or for other legitimate reasons like enforcement of legal rights, fraud prevention, etc. Residual anonymous information and aggregate information, neither of which identifies you (directly or indirectly), may be stored indefinitely.

  5. Your Rights:

    Depending on the law that applies, you may have a right to access and rectify or erase your personal data or receive a copy of your personal data, restrict or object to the active processing of your data, ask us to share (port) your personal information to another entity, withdraw any consent you provided to us to process your data, a right to lodge a complaint with a statutory authority and such other rights as may be relevant under applicable laws. To exercise these rights, you can write to us at hello@cardmachinequeen.co.uk. We will respond to your request in accordance with applicable law.

    You may opt-out of direct marketing communications or the profiling we carry out for marketing purposes by writing to us at hello@cardmachinequeen.co.uk.

    Do note that if you do not allow us to collect or process the required personal information or withdraw the consent to process the same for the required purposes, you may not be able to access or use the services for which your information was sought.

  6. Cookies Etc.

    To learn more about how we use these and your choices in relation to these tracking technologies, please refer to our Cookie Policy.

  7. Security:

    The security of your information is important to us and we will use reasonable security measures to prevent the loss, misuse or unauthorized alteration of your information under our control. However, given the inherent risks, we cannot guarantee absolute security and consequently, we cannot ensure or warrant the security of any information you transmit to us and you do so at your own risk.

  8. Grievance / Data Protection Officer:

    If you have any queries or concerns about the processing of your information that is available with us, you may email us email: hello@cardmachinequeen.co.uk. We will address your concerns in accordance with applicable law.