Retailers back hike in contactless spending limit

More than half (53%) of all retailers that accept contactless payments said they would like the spending limit to be hiked above the current £30 level.

In the survey conducted by Barclaycard, 37% of retailers called for a £50 limit, while 20% suggested the cap should be £100.

Three-quarters of retailers that have introduced contactless payments said they were now processing 30% more transactions each day on average.

One in five retailers is processing up to 50% more payments.

Barclaycard’s research found that ‘touch and go’ spending is poised to rocket by a further 317% in the next four years, with seven in 10 Brits already using the technology more than they did 12 months ago.

Some 59% of British shoppers now use contactless, with more than half of all purchases under £30 in the UK now paid for using the technology.

Time is money

But despite its popularity, almost half of all retailers still do not accept contactless payments, Barclaycard’s research showed.

The survey revealed that 47% of retailers were unaware of how much time consumers saved by paying by contactless.

Barclaycard experts predict that contactless payments will save shoppers almost £1bn worth of time every year by 2021, reducing the average transaction by seven seconds compared to chip and PIN and 15 seconds compared to cash.

Tami Hargreaves, director of innovation and partnerships at Barclaycard Mobile Payments, said: “As the old adage goes, ‘time is money’, and since introducing contactless to the UK 10 years ago, we’ve seen Brits embrace the technology in their droves.

“And with speed, security and convenience all being so important for shoppers, it’s not surprising that contactless is quickly becoming the most popular way to pay.”