Contactless (2024)

FAQs

What does contactless do? ›

Contactless payment is a way of paying that doesn't require cash or even swiping a card. All you have to do is tap or hold your contactless card or smartphone near a compatible card reader while you're checking out.

Contactless Payment allows customers to make payments, without using cash or swiping the card. The customers must 'Tap' or 'Wave' their card over a card-reader to use this method. After that, the terminal will connect with the Bank Account and the payment will be made, quickly.

There are two main forms of contactless payments—credit or debit cards, and digital wallets connected to your smartphone or device (like an Apple Watch). If your credit card displays the contactless payment symbol (those four curved lines), you already have this ability.

HM Treasury and the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) confirmed changes to its rules to allow for the contactless limit increase to £100 in March 2021. The FCA also confirmed the threshold for multiple contactless transactions before a customer is required to enter their PIN will also rise from £130 to £300.

Because contactless payments require neither PIN nor signature authorisation, lost or stolen contactless cards can be used to make fraudulent transactions.

Your data is encrypted and your details are kept safe during every transaction. The retailer must enter an amount into the payment terminal first, and then you need to hold your card very close to it. This means you can't accidentally spend money from walking by or being near the payment terminal.

Safer transactions

Tap-to-pay technology is more reliable and secure than other forms of payment. The chip technology protects you against any fraudulent purchases through encryption and dynamic data technologies.

There are no additional fees for using your contactless card.

Using tap to pay can be a more convenient and secure way to make purchases than swiping or inserting your credit card. Credit or debit cards that have contactless technology feature a symbol of four curved lines that look a bit like the Wi-Fi symbol turned on its side.

Tap-to-pay is less vulnerable to credit card skimming and other types of fraud since the card itself never touches the payment terminal for a transaction. “Skimming” involves using a hidden device to read and translate credit card data when a credit card is swiped to make a purchase.

What are examples of contactless payment? ›

Some debit and credit cards have NFC technology that allows the customer to pay for items by tapping or waving their card above the payments reader. These types of cards are called contactless payments cards.

Contactless payment is a secure payment method using a debit or credit card, smartcard, or another payment device by using RFID technology and near-field communication. To use the system, a consumer taps the payment card near a point-of-sale terminal equipped with the technology.

You can use a contactless card as many times as you like within a day so long as each purchase is under £100. Just bear in mind that you may be asked to use chip and PIN after using contactless a few times in a row. Don't worry, it's just an extra security measure to check it's you making any payments.

Contactless payments are touch-free with no need to type in your PIN or hand over your card. Simply touch your card to the reader, listen for the beep, and your payment is securely processed.

Always tap in and tap out.

If you don't tap in and tap out on each journey, we won't know where you have travelled, so we can't charge the right fare. If this happens, your journey will be incomplete, and you could be charged a maximum fare. On a London Bus or tram, you only need to tap in.

Handling cash is not a concern at the checkout. You also don't have the hassle of punching in your PIN. Tap-to-pay technology is more reliable and secure than other forms of payment. The chip technology protects you against any fraudulent purchases through encryption and dynamic data technologies.

Tap-to-pay offers enhanced security through encrypted communication and tokenization, reducing the risk of data breaches and fraud compared to traditional credit card swiping methods.