Contactless - why?

JKSandy

I have to agree with the OP, contactless isn't as widely available in Edinburgh and even in places it it available it's not always clear.

When I lived in Manchester, I used it several times a week.

20aday

I like using Contactless because I find it much more convenient.

One tap, a beep and you're done. I work in a shop (not a high street name) and people over the last few weeks keep asking when we're having contactless installed.

If I lived in London I'd probably use it a lot more than I do up here in Derby.

PeacefulWaters

IIRC contactless is either the same cost or in some cases cheaper than Oyster because it calculates best fare over a week instead of a day, bringing certain travel cards into play.

I'll let Londoners confirm or demolish my theory.

dzug1

Chino wrote: »

Where did you read / who told you this?

I think it's 6 transactions (possibly a variable number) before you get asked for a PIN on the next one

TartanSaver

I checked. It's the same cost as adult oyster, and it can be cheaper with a weekly cap, but it can't apply railcard discounts, so it's no use to me. I haven't been to London for 18 months, and I've no reason to believe I'll be there any time soon.

http://www.tfl.gov.uk/fares-and-payments/contactless/is-contactless-for-me?intcmp=8282

Paul_1977

Interestingly Sainsburys in my local area have removed the contactless readers only months after installing them. They seem to be working fine but now they are gone and have been replaced with standard Chip and Pin readers.

benjus

dzug1 wrote: »

I think it's 6 transactions (possibly a variable number) before you get asked for a PIN on the next one

So what happens if you're trying to get into a tube station or board a London bus when you hit this limit? There's no chip & PIN option there...

I've only used contactless on London transport once (I normally use an annual Travelcard on Oyster), but I must say I wasn't very impressed. The machine rejected the card I wanted to use. I know there's nothing wrong with the card as I use it a lot for contactless, and the machine wasn't completely broken as it accepted another card I had with me.

Maybe it was because I'd done a certain number of contactless transactions since I last entered a PIN, or maybe it was something completely different. Either way I wouldn't have been happy if I'd been forced to go and pay for a paper ticket due to their systems not working.

Bettie

I'm getting mine back out of storage as Visa are running another promotion :
"Win a Great British weekend break every day"
"Everyday Britons can win when they touch and pay with Visa contactless."

Herbalus

benjus wrote: »

So what happens if you're trying to get into a tube station or board a London bus when you hit this limit? There's no chip & PIN option there...

I've only used contactless on London transport once (I normally use an annual Travelcard on Oyster), but I must say I wasn't very impressed. The machine rejected the card I wanted to use. I know there's nothing wrong with the card as I use it a lot for contactless, and the machine wasn't completely broken as it accepted another card I had with me.

Maybe it was because I'd done a certain number of contactless transactions since I last entered a PIN, or maybe it was something completely different. Either way I wouldn't have been happy if I'd been forced to go and pay for a paper ticket due to their systems not working.

I think tube payments are meant to be an exception. Although I'm not convinced by contactless in London either. My card (which works everywhere else) was declined on a bus and I simply had to get off and walk. No cash now remember?

Bloomberg

TartanSaver wrote: »

Ever since contactless started to become a big thing, I've struggled to understand the point. I've never been in a pub with a contactless reader, and for supermarkets I don't see much difference between contactless and chip & pin.

If I have a contactless card in my wallet, my Lothian bus pass doesn't work without taking it out of my wallet. I also hear numerous tales of payment being taken from the "wrong" card. Like many on here, I have plenty of bank accounts. If all the cards were contactless and someone stole my wallet, they could easily spend £200+ in small transactions.

I guess what I'm asking is: why do people like them? A lot of people post saying they regard contactless as an important feature. What do you use it for?

Contactless payments are really handy in pubs. You can pay for your drinks quickly without the need to count your cash and the bar person count your change. Some Costa coffee branches also accept contactless payments which is useful.

Contactless payments are convenient but not essential. Some people are very much in awe of the technology. I use it for the reasons mentioned above, however if the feature was withdrawn I would not be overly bothered.