Contactless payment - how long to show on account?

solentsusie

Hi


I made a contactless payment in a small shoe repairer on Friday afternoon. Whilst I was looking for my item receipt, which was somewhere in the bottom of my bag, the retailer took my card and put it across the machine as a contactless payment. Looking at the receipt the payment went through and wasn't declined for any reason.


I was just checking my account and it isn't showing as paid, nor is it showing as a pending transaction, but a payment I made in Tesco on my way to work today is pending.


Am I being stupid or do contactless payments take a lot longer to show than chip and pin transactions?


I would have thought that it would be showing by today, at least as a pending transaction. In case it is relevant I used my Nationwide account.

Krash420

The time it takes payments to appear on the statements can vary, sometimes it can be instantaneous (such as that from Tesco today), whilst others can take a couple of days. This is normal, and depends more on the retailer than the payment of method. It's likely that had you have paid for it via Chip & Pin, you'd still not see it on your account.

Give it a few days and it'll come up, but to just reiterate, it's not something specific to Chip & Pin.

Kim_13

Contactless payments do take longer to show/process than chip and pin transactions.

It can also depend on the retailer. Larger companies are usually quicker to take the money. Sometimes retailers don't download the transactions straight away to take the money. I've used chip and pin on a train and had it take several days to show as pending.

lee111s

It depends on the retailer. For example, Lidl and Aldi seem to show it as a pending transaction moments after the payment is made, whereas other retailers I have used, it doesn't show as pending and is usually just debited from the account at the end of the next working day.

JuicyJesus

If the retailer authorises contactless payments online (most don't) and/or your contactless card is one which requires authorisation online for all transactions (most don't) then your available balance will be docked the amount concerned immediately.

If the retailer doesn't authorise online and your card doesn't either then the first your bank will know of the transaction is when it posts, which can be anywhere up to 6 months from the date of the transaction but more realistically will be up to a couple of days.

20aday

I've found when I use Apple Pay it shows as a "Pending Transaction" in Online Banking pretty much straight away.

When using a physical card it's not shown but typically taken from my Available Balance around two working days later.

Sometimes when using contactless in Boots it's been up to three/four days before it appears.

chuckley

Beware if you have a Barclays credit card and you're close to the balance... some of these can take quite some time to show up and don't even show as pending.

Made me reduce my use of the card.

solentsusie

lee111s wrote: »

It depends on the retailer. For example, Lidl and Aldi seem to show it as a pending transaction moments after the payment is made, whereas other retailers I have used, it doesn't show as pending and is usually just debited from the account at the end of the next working day.

Thanks. I use Aldi a lot as it is my nearest supermarket so I am used to seeing payments taken pretty much immediately.

Used my card in Waitrose last night and this is showing as pending. Still no sign of the shoe repairer though. I am going to be interested to see how long this takes now.

solentsusie

Payment was made on 30th and it is now the 5th and still not showing yet.

solentsusie

Well the payment still isn't showing after a week. Even more oddly I went to the same shoe repairer again on Wednesday and paid again via contactless and that payment has gone through.


Odd that I have a receipt for the other payment and it just hasn't been taken.

JuicyJesus

solentsusie wrote: »

Well the payment still isn't showing after a week. Even more oddly I went to the same shoe repairer again on Wednesday and paid again via contactless and that payment has gone through.


Odd that I have a receipt for the other payment and it just hasn't been taken.

I wouldn't spend it. They have six months to actually take it (up to six years under certain circumstances).