Difficulties paying TFL with Monzo (and other cards) with Apple Pay on Apple Watch

Slightly misleading as when you freeze the card, your ApplePay card is also blocked and therefore can’t be used.

What’s misleading? When the card is frozen it will still work on TfL. Apple Pay isn’t involved in this particular instance.

6 Likes

If the card is frozen, the ApplePay card is blocked and therefore can’t be used.

The whole point of this thread is about TFL and ApplePay

Never mind.

I think this is a feature of Apple Pay not Monzo.

It’s a feature of Monzo. They block your ApplePay card when your physical card is blocked.

Others allow for ApplePay to continue while the physical is blocked.

Edit: Freeze card 💳 but still use Apple or Android Pay

1 Like

Instead of an Apple Watch, I use Apple Pay on my iPhone and on occasion (although not for a while :crossed_fingers:) I’ll get a ‘Seek Assistance’ and if I remember correctly the code was 99 for the majority although I think there was another number but cannot remember. I would get the confirmed Apple Pay on the iPhone but barriers would not open. Could this be with presenting too soon to the gate?

I’ve been digging a little deeper through the experiences I’ve had. I had originally just assumed this was an issue with the Apple Watch Series 4, but it was the Apple Support team who told me they’d had no reports of anything amiss, and that if the Apple Watch was showing me the “Done :heavy_check_mark:”, then it had done everything it needed to do, so they’re the ones who suggested it was an issue with Monzo specifically. I’ve now renamed the thread in recognition of the fact it’s not just a Monzo/TFL issue.

It’s also clear to me now that some gates in TFL stations work less well than others, which suggests that gate sensitivity is also a factor.

It’s interesting that this is being reported as only series 3 and 4 watches, as I’ve definitely seen it repeatedly on my series 2. With both monzo and Amex. The workaround (which would align with what has been said here) was to click before I got to the gate so it was up and ready. I actually gave up on the watch recently though.

I wonder is this is something TFL or apple will ever fix.

I thught that was what you’re always supposed to do?

1 Like

True, though for physical cards or if you kept the device offline and it was unable to receive the freeze, it would still be usable in this specific case.

1 Like

I wasn’t even aware you could just hold your watch on a terminal for it to automatically initiate a payment. I know you could with the iPhone but always told friends to bring up the wallet with the double press of the power button (or home button on older phones) and put their finger print/face ID in first so its ready to go as soon as you tap - saved a fraction of a second.

Sorry yes, but I would do it well before I reached the gate line so that it had time to initiate the card properly. If I clicked the button right as I was reaching the gate line it was too soon and I would get the error.

I have to admit that over the past few days, I’ve been trying to double-click to initiate Apple Pay at east 5-10 seconds before getting to the gate, and the success rate does appear to have improved, so that does seem like a good recommendation (unless there’s something else I’ve subconsciously changed that might be influencing the outcome)

I’m pretty sure that on the watch and devices with Face ID, you have to manually trigger Apple Pay, otherwise it just tells you to.

I always trigger it when I’m about to get off the escalator.

1 Like

Nice to hear it’s not just me! Went to London and was going to impress my dad by tapping my watch but after doing the normal double tap for Apple Pay and touching the reader, the TFL terminal just said Seek Assistance, despite the watch saying Done. Just used my physical card.

I found that success rate is also improved if I move my watch close to the TfL reader very swiftly. If I move it to the reader more slowly, I nearly always error at some stations. But a swift shove to the centre of the reader now has a near perfect success rate.

I had this with my series 3, but never experienced it with my old series 1. Using Amex, not Monzo, occurring about 30% of the time.

Contactless on TfL was probably the main tangible use for my Apple Watch, so was super disappointing.

Using a Citymapper Pass now, which is physical, wishfully hoping it’s no longer an issue by the time Citymapper can be added to mobile wallet - but not optimistic.

As much of a drag it is getting a card out, at least there’s no risk of embarrassment with a failed entry - particularly with a watch makes you feel stupid and you get so much commuter rage!

3 Likes

THIS

2 Likes

Hopefully the new Express Transit Card functionality in iOS 12.3 reported by @dudesuper will fix it.

More info here and Apple’s instructions on setting it up.

1 Like