NEW YORK, July 16 (Reuters) - Cash or credit?

That is a familiar choice at the gas pump, with a cheaper price for cash payments and a higher one for credit card purchases. But will this fly at a grocery store, hotel or other retail outpost?

Visa Inc and MasterCard Inc's proposed $7.25 billion settlement with retailers over swipe fees, which credit card companies charge to process payments, could lead to a two-tiered payment system for a host of transactions, analysts say.

The agreement allows retailers to collectively bargain on future swipe fees, which are also known as interchange rates. It also opens up the possibility that more retailers can add surcharges for credit card transactions, although they would have to explain them to consumers in clear, concise language.

The settlement is not a completely done deal since one of the plaintiffs, the National Association of Convenience Stores, is rejecting it. Even so, here are the answers to four questions consumers should be asking now: