Pub refused to make contactless payment

UnsureTenant

I was in a local pub at the weekend and way paying for a couple of drinks. Total amount was much less than £20.

I showed my card and the bartender enters the amount to the machine, it's a recent model which clearly supports contactless payments. The screen shows the usual insert or present card (or words to that effect) and the contactless logo is showing on the screen.

At this point the machine is still in his hand and I'm passing him the card. At this point - from my experience - most bartenders will say "can I use contactless" to which I always reply yes. However in this case the guy goes to insert the card. I tell him it's a contactless card so he can just touch it. He replies "we don't do that here".

Bemused (and slightly tipsy) I questioned that, saying something like "oh, how come?" He replied - "we just don't do it". Obviously he wasn't in a talkative mood so I didn't ask any more questions. But it did annoy me a bit. I think contactless is great and in my opinion it's especially useful in pubs/bars, where you don't want to hold other people up by going through the slightly longer pin entry process.

I wondered almost immediately afterwards what he would have said/done if I had just touched my card on the reader while it was in his hand. He probably wouldn't have been impressed.

Is there any reason for all of this? I'm sure I remember reading somewhere that banks take the risk of contactless payments (in the case of stolen cards) to alleviate retailers reluctance to implement the new technology.

Can anyone enlighten me?

Wilt

He probably just doesn't know about it.

gik

Training/early days yet....and banks do not take the risk. They will if they can find a way not to cover the transaction. Banks do not give money away!

geerex

Carry more cash.

Is this what we've become? Paying for drinks with contactless cards?

lee111s

geerex wrote: »

Carry more cash.

Is this what we've become? Paying for drinks with contactless cards?

I guess, otherwise places wouldn't offer it as an option!

gik

geerex wrote: »

Carry more cash.

Is this what we've become? Paying for drinks with contactless cards?

I saw someone in ASDA paying for a newspaper and a tube of polo mints by credit card! There really should be limits!

elsien

I've never been seen anywhere offering contactless payment, or been asked if I want to use it. Maybe it depends where you live.

Wilt

gik wrote: »

I saw someone in ASDA paying for a newspaper and a tube of polo mints by credit card! There really should be limits!

Why? Contactless card transactions are just as fast as somebody counting out their coppers...

marleyboy

Having been FORCED into having a contactless card by the "You simply must, its the next safest thing since Internet banking" bank. I now have to carry my card in a metallic wallet designed to stop such unwanted transactions with the wave of my card.

So far I have not been told I MUST use the contactless method of purchasing, something I have no intention of doing. Akin to the new mobile app the bank also wants me to install on my phone, I simply dont trust it.

Bring back the days when a CC purchase included my name in the form of a unique signature and not some pin number, as it was with the introduction of the then; oh so safe, chip and pin method, so safe, its already being updated to this even more safer, you dont even need a pin number method. Back when using my card to make a purchase meant a face to face with the seller, in the days when theft or fraud from my card was not at risk of being committed so anonymously.

Thrugelmir

UnsureTenant wrote: »

Is there any reason for all of this? I'm sure I remember reading somewhere that banks take the risk of contactless payments (in the case of stolen cards) to alleviate retailers reluctance to implement the new technology.

Can anyone enlighten me?

Certain businesses may be reluctant to accept payment by such methods. As much to protect their customers.

mindwideopen

It's been a while since I was working in payments so take this with a pinch of salt but they might be charged a higher fee for a contactless payment - the banks charge the retailer a few % of the payment as a fee anytime you use a debit or credit card to cover the cost of the system but also the fraud risk - with a contactless card and not putting in your PIN there's a higher fraud risk and so you might pay a higher fee and not really want people to use contactless.

Again, I haven't worked in payments since contactless came in properly so that might be rubbish!