DEFINITION of 'Contactless Payment’
Contactless payment is a secure method for consumers to purchase products or services via debit, credit or smartcards (also known as chip cards), by using RFID technology or near-field communication (NFC). To make a contactless payment, a person simply needs to tap their card near a point-of-sale terminal – leading to the nickname “tap-and-go”. Since contactless payments do not require a signature or a PIN, transactions sizes on cards are limited. The allowable amount for a contactless transaction varies by country and by bank. Examples of non-credit or debit card contactless payments include transit cards, Apple Pay, Android Pay and Google Wallet.
Though I could debate this… While technically, no, it doesn’t quite have to touch, the term contactless doesn’t refer to physical contact. It refers to electrical contact (which makes more sense when you consider its relation to a traditional contact card with a contact pad that has to be electrically connected to the reader).
well, that is wrong for a start! It should say: "contactless payments do not require a signature or a PIN for lower value transactions " or something along those lines
Yep, that is a Wiki, they are renounded for being unspecific and inaccurate.
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Anarchist
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A contactless payment is one where the card doesn’t have to touch the reader? That’s what I said previously. I’m not arguing. I’m stating what I believe to be the case.
One last post and I’m out. Your second screenshot is correct. Notice the word mainly. Given only a tiny fraction of British merchants are capable of contactless+PIN transactions and no merchant who cares would allow contactless+signature (it’s a liability risk); then the use of the word mainly is correct.
You too and sometime, if you shop at Marks & Spencer (I don’t except for food that never reaches £30) give it a try and see if what I’ve heard is correct (that they support contactless with online PIN). As far as I know, they’re the only large British chain I’ve heard of supporting it.
Correct, any contactless payment above the CVM theshold (additional verification) is classified as ‘high value contactless’. The most common form in the UK is device-based verification (such as Google Pay). This is the only form of high value contactless widely supported in the UK.
But there are tiny numbers of merchants that support other options. So £30 isn’t quite an absolute limit with a card (though it is the overwhelming majority of the time).
and sometime, if you shop at Marks & Spencer (I don’t except for food that never reaches £30) give it a try and see if what I’ve heard is correct (that they support contactless with online PIN). As far as I know, they’re the only large British chain I’ve heard of supporting it.