Nationwide card reader - rubbish

andygb

I tried to use my Nationwide card reader to pay my window cleaner £15.00. Easy you may think? No, an absolute shower of the proverbial. I had to create a new payee, put in their details and amount then insert my card in the reader. I followed the prompts and got through to the part with the code, put that in and it asked me to confirm the last four digits of the card, which of course, I didn't know, so had to take out the card, write down the last four digits and start again. I got through to selecting the card number and it timed out. Did it again and it timed out.

Is this really progress? 

All for £15.

Rob5342

Nationwide are hopelessly old fashioned, progress is something they take very little interest in. Most other banks let you do it very easily in the app without needing a card reader. 

vacheron

Can't you see the last 4 digits of the card when it is inserted into the reader? That's what I seem to recall from the last time I used one many years ago. However these were the older cards with the 16 digits embossed on the front. I could imagine you can't for the newer smooth cards with the details in smaller text on the back.

That's why I always keep some cash for window cleaners and the like. On the times I don't have any he just adds it to my tab for next time.

QrizB

I'm surprised your window cleaner hasn't got a Square or Zettle!

SevenOfNine

Thanks for that andygb. Haven't used the card reader since getting new style cards, so I'd have got an irritating surprise as well!

TBH only keeping my N/W open, & arranged to comply with 'fairer share' conditions of last year, to see if they're the same & we both get a payout again.
 
Insurance via N/W with the new supplier AVIVA was fine last year, but proving impossible this year, flat out refusal to cover ANY medical declarations. Last year was their 'honeymoon period', this year they're finding ways to dump older people, I know others who were also acceptable last year, but not now even though medical decs are the same as before.

wmb194

andygb said:

I tried to use my Nationwide card reader to pay my window cleaner £15.00. Easy you may think? No, an absolute shower of the proverbial. I had to create a new payee, put in their details and amount then insert my card in the reader. I followed the prompts and got through to the part with the code, put that in and it asked me to confirm the last four digits of the card, which of course, I didn't know, so had to take out the card, write down the last four digits and start again. I got through to selecting the card number and it timed out. Did it again and it timed out.

Is this really progress? 

All for £15.

Assuming you have a smartphone, if you look in your NW app's settings there's an option to remove the card reader and then it'll use device biometrics instead.

https://www.nationwide.co.uk/help/your-details/using-biometrics/

MattMattMattUK

wmb194 said:

andygb said:

I tried to use my Nationwide card reader to pay my window cleaner £15.00. Easy you may think? No, an absolute shower of the proverbial. I had to create a new payee, put in their details and amount then insert my card in the reader. I followed the prompts and got through to the part with the code, put that in and it asked me to confirm the last four digits of the card, which of course, I didn't know, so had to take out the card, write down the last four digits and start again. I got through to selecting the card number and it timed out. Did it again and it timed out.

Is this really progress? 

All for £15.

Assuming you have a smartphone, if you look in your NW app's settings there's an option to remove the card reader and then it'll use device biometrics instead.

https://www.nationwide.co.uk/help/your-details/using-biometrics/

Nationwide have been pushing this hard for at least two years now, they actually removed some functionality from the app recently to force people to switch (one used to be able to pay an existing payee without the card reader, but they changed it to being required for every payment).

Eyeful

andygb said:

I tried to use my Nationwide card reader to pay my window cleaner £15.00. 

As it was such a low amount, why did you not just pay cash?.

MattMattMattUK

Eyeful said:

andygb said:

I tried to use my Nationwide card reader to pay my window cleaner £15.00. 

As it was such a low amount, why did you not just pay cash?.

To be fair a lot of people are totally cashless now, I have not used cash since early 2019, most of my friends and family are also now cashless and others might use a few hundred pounds of the stuff in a year, many never even carry a debit card so would be unable to get money out of a cashpoint. 

Rob5342

MattMattMattUK said:

Eyeful said:

andygb said:

I tried to use my Nationwide card reader to pay my window cleaner £15.00. 

As it was such a low amount, why did you not just pay cash?.

To be fair a lot of people are totally cashless now, I have not used cash since early 2019, most of my friends and family are also now cashless and others might use a few hundred pounds of the stuff in a year, many never even carry a debit card so would be unable to get money out of a cashpoint. 

I'm almost completely cashless, the only time I use cash is at the fish and chip shop as they don't take cards. Our window cleaner prefers bank transfers so he doesn't have to pay the cash in, and it's easier for me as I don't have to remember to walk down to the shop to use the cash machine. 

Exodi

Rob5342 said:

Nationwide are hopelessly old fashioned, progress is something they take very little interest in. Most other banks let you do it very easily in the app without needing a card reader. 

Except you can do it in the app without needing the card reader....

Nationwide were bombarding me nearly two years ago with notices that you could replace the card reader with biometrics if you did a short one off verification process. Did it in 2 minutes and never used the card reader since.

Of course there are some that might flat out refuse to provide a selfie or whatever is required of the verification process. Just like people who refuse to provide ID to their banks or get a Tesco Clubcard. Either these people are kingpins, or overestimate their own importance.

While the OP managed to make a complete pigs ear of it, when I did use the card reader a couple of years ago, it only took a minute or two and certainly didn't ruin my day.

I'd rather a company had strict security processes (especially for setting up a new payee) than not.

Eyeful said:

andygb said:

I tried to use my Nationwide card reader to pay my window cleaner £15.00. 

As it was such a low amount, why did you not just pay cash?.

90% of the time, my window cleaner does my windows while I'm at work. The evidence is a payment request slip through the door, catching him on the cameras (oh and clean windows!).

Unless you're someone that seldom leaves the house or you plan on leaving a secret envelope of cash outside, it's not realistic to expect you can pay them in cash.