Debit card requires activation.

happyhacker

Yep, thanks all. The shop was willing to do a transaction. All well. Take care.

PixelPound

MinuteNoodles said:

Do your weekly shopping, make sure it's over £45 and then you have no option other than to use the PIN.

Well no, because if the shop the OP uses doesn't allow it, then they would have to stop you just before you reached £45. I can't see any shop stopping people spend more than £45 when people are going less and buying more (return to the weekly big shop)

PixelPound

simongregson said:

Just tap it in the shop and it will prompt you to insert the card and enter the pin, the shop should be fine with that surely, it's not like you didn't try to use contactless.

I know local shops near me have signs saying "no cash, contactless only" but they have chip and pin terminals that work, I think it's more they want cards not cash and taking contactless and card payment as meaning the same.

Fingerbobs

Most (probably all?) contactless cards periodically require the PIN to be used anyway, so even if you have an activated contactless card, there's no guarantee that it will allow a contactless transaction every time. 

username

Just use the self scan at your local supermarket. But a small item (chocolate, gum, drink,fruit etc) and take it to the self checkout with no-one to judge or tell you how to pay.