‘Why have I been turned down for a contactless payment card?’
Question an skilled: A Barclays customer asks why the bank turned down her ask for 
I turned a buyer of Barclays previous summer, and was not despatched a contactless payment card. I feel it would be amazingly helpful to have one particular, notably as buses no longer accept income and my oyster card often runs out of credit history.
When I requested Barclays for one, it stated that I had to arrive in department to indication anything. In the course of my appointment, the agent explained he experienced to do a credit check out, which I agreed to, even with my bafflement as to why this experienced to be accomplished. Apparently, the personal computer turned me down, and the agent wouldn’t say why.
Do I have to have good credit rating on buy to receive a contactless card?
JF, by e mail
Contactless payment debit playing cards let customers to shell out for products costing £20 or considerably less by touching the card on a contactless Pin reader. Transactions are typically much faster, as no signature or Pin verification is essential.
Understandably, our reader was eager to obtain a contactless debit card from her lender. The playing cards are notably beneficial for TFL vacation, as a contactless card can be used instead of an oyster card, which is useful for those who go away their oyster cards at house, or fail to remember to top-up.
When I originally approached Barclays, the lender wouldn’t explain to me why the client had been denied a contactless payment card without having conducting an investigation into her case, but mentioned that the vast majority of the debit cards issued very last 12 months immediately had the contactless facility.
Lloyds, on the other hand, advised me why its buyers might be turned down for a contactless debit card.
A spokesman for the bank said: “When contactless transactions are created, employing our debit playing cards, they are authorised immediately at the terminal and do not examine regardless of whether the client has sufficient resources in their account.
“At Lloyds, consumers receive debit playing cards with distinct ranges of manage to match their wants and economic placement. The determination on what sort of debit card they receive is made when the buyer opens their account (following a credit history check out). If an present customer requests a contactless card, we assessment the financial profile they keep with us for appropriateness, relatively than carrying out yet another official credit history check.”
The spokesman mentioned that some consumers are not supplied with contactless debit playing cards right after this examine “to help safeguard them in opposition to going into an unplanned overdraft.”
This may well then, explain why the reader was turned down for a contactless card.
The spokesman extra: “We are investigating the feasibility of new contactless technologies exactly where we could verify customers’ balances just before authorising transactions, which would enable us to increase eligibility to these consumers.”
Santander said that all of its customers ended up “immediately entitled to a contactless card.”
Richard Koch, head of plan at the United kingdom Playing cards Affiliation, states that contactless playing cards are secure and highly safe, “embedded with numerous levels of security to defend you against fraud.”
Mr Koch mentioned: “That’s why contactless fraud is incredibly exceptional – in truth it totals much less than 1p for each £100 expended. There is a £20 limit on a contactless transaction and, for included stability, from time to time you will be questioned to enter your Pin to display that you are still in possession of your card.
“If you have a contactless card you are protected by exactly the identical authorized protection from fraud as you are with Chip & Pin, meaning that if your card is lost or stolen you will get your money back again.”
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