Can Bristow & Sutor dictate to the PO which a/cs allow contactless payments?

Kernel_Sanders

TSB offer a welcome 5% cashback if you use their Classic Plus current account debit card contactlessly (that's a new adverb:)), up to £100 of purchases each month. So, I thought, I'll use it at the Post Office's contactless readers to pay a collection account (max £30). I tried to use it (for the first time) at the Post Office yesterday but the screen didn't even show the contactless display, only the one asking for a PIN. Tried at adjacent counter, same thing. Staff said both readers had accepted contactless all day. Went to Poundland 20 minutes later but it was accepted! I returned to the PO today to try again, but noticed that the reader was again asking for the PIN but this time even before I'd got the card out of my pocket. So, I was wondering if the PO charge merchants a premium for these payments and if not, why would Bristow & Sutor impose such a restriction?

redux

I don't think contactless allows cash transactions, which may be what this is counted as.

For instance, if I pay by ordinary debit card at the pub, it's possible to get cash as well if wanted, like at the supermarket, but when I paid contactless at the pub this wasn't an option.

Kernel_Sanders

redux wrote: »

I don't think contactless allows cash transactions, which may be what this is counted as.

For instance, if I pay by ordinary debit card at the pub, it's possible to get cash as well if wanted, like at the supermarket, but when I paid contactless at the pub this wasn't an option.

You don't understand; the cashback is paid the following month from the TSB to your current account. Thus, there is no cash involved in the transaction at all.

Siamese

There is a limit on the transaction value for contactless payment and you will be asked to verify with a PIN sometimes, to prevent fraud if your card is stolen.

Ask TSB what their limit is - maybe it's lower than £30.

sourcrates

These transactions use exactly the same technology as chip and pin.
Every contactless card has an in-built security check that requires you to enter a PIN after a number of consecutive contactless payments to verify you as the genuine cardholder. The limit before a PIN is required varies between different card issuers and account types.
Using a contactless card in a variety of environments for a Chip and PIN payment or withdrawing cash at an ATM will also reset the limit counter.

redux

Kernel_Sanders wrote: »

You don't understand; the cashback is paid the following month from the TSB to your current account. Thus, there is no cash involved in the transaction at all.

I think I understood.

Sorry if my waffle about cashback in a supermarket or pub seemed irrelevant or a mistake. It was to illustrate that contactless isn't valid for cash type transactions.

Although there is no actual physical cash in your transaction, you are remitting funds to a financial organisation, which may be deemed by someone or other as equivalent to cash, rather than a retail purchase.

But this is only a surmise. It could be that place hasn't upped the limit to £30, or just one of those random once in a while PIN requests, as per posts above.

Kernel_Sanders

The requested payment was £25, TSB‘s limit is £30.