Contactless Payments
Contactless technology is expected soon to replace standard chip and PIN transactions as customers' preferred method of card payment. Contactless payments can be made by passing a credit or debit card across the face of a contactless reader and within a matter of seconds the machine will approve the transaction.
Only those transactions of a value up to £100.00 may be paid for using a card via contactless, however if the card holder is using their mobile phone to pay (ApplePay & AndroidPay) then the limit is many thousands of pounds (dependant on the issuing bank). Contactless cards also allow the capability to pay for goods or services using a PIN should the value of a transaction exceed the £100.00 limit.
In addition, to approve some transactions below the limit the cardholder will still occasionally be asked by the terminal to enter his or her PIN. These requests are made at random and ensure that a card has not fallen into the wrong hands, thus maintaining the highest level of card security.
How can contactless solutions benefit your business?
- The list of advantages afforded by this new technology is extensive, although it is important to note that inevitably it will vary between different types of business:
- Faster payments - the technology allows for the average transaction to take less than a second, meaning not only an increase in the number of transactions over a given period but a better standard of customer service and more chance of returning custom.
- Few or no queues - the greater throughput also significantly reduces your queue times; Visa Deloitte found in 2008 that 70% of customers will abandon a purchase if a queue is too long, so the likelihood of this occurring is much lower.
- Fewer receipts - receipts are only printed if the customer requests one, saving on additional paper costs.
- Customer preference - a retailer's facility to accept contactless payments can be clearly displayed in-store and at shop windows using the international acceptance logo; implementing the technology is a clear signal of intent that a business is seeking the latest methods of improving customer service and so the retailer can likely expect to see an increase in footfall.
- Greater spread of staff resources - the greater efficiency in payment processing means staff can spend less time at the point of sale and more on the shop floor.
- Equally secure processing - using a contactless card is just as secure as using a chip and PIN, so both merchants and cardholders can be assured they are no more likely to be targeted by fraudsters.