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£100 Contactless Payment Limit

If you haven’t already heard, the limit for contactless payments will rise to £100 from 15 October 2021.

This means you’ll be able to use your contactless debit and credit cards to make payments up to £100 (previously £45) without entering your PIN. It’s likely that most retailers will apply the new limit straight away but with so many terminals to update, it may take a while to roll this out everywhere.

Here, we look at what it means for you. 

Why is the contactless payment limit increasing?

HM Treasury and the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) have decided to increase the contactless payment limit as a balance between convenience and security, because many more people are now making payments this way. Here are some details provided by ukfinance.org.uk

  • 83% of people in the UK now use contactless
  • in 2020, the number of contactless payments made in the UK increased by 12% to 9.6 billion
  • the £100 limit was officially announced in the government’s 2021 Budget. 

How does the £100 contactless payment limit affect you?

If you’ve used it you’ll already know contactless is a fast, easy and secure way to pay by card or device, without needing your PIN.

The new £100 limit means you can use contactless payments for larger purchases like your weekly food shop or buying fuel (although it’s worth bearing in mind you can still pay using Chip and PIN or a digital wallet if contactless doesn’t work or you just prefer to pay that way).

This change will happen automatically on 15 October 2021 and most retailers will apply the limit straight away so you don’t need to do anything. If you want to know if a retailer has introduced the new limit, you can ask them in store or just follow the instructions on the payment machine.

Can I set my own contactless limit?

Unfortunately we can’t currently set different contactless limits but if you’re worried about the increase, you can just use Chip and PIN, or switch off the contactless option on your debit Mastercard via the ‘Cards’ section of our App.

Are contactless cards secure?

Yes, we and the industry as a whole believe they are. The new £100 limit is being introduced to balance security, convenience and customer choice. Plus, to give you extra peace of mind:

  • extra security features are built in eg from time to time, we’ll ask you to enter your PIN to confirm the card isn’t being used by someone who shouldn’t (just so you know you can view your debit Mastercard PIN anytime in the ‘Cards’ section of our App)
  • we also fully protect our customers against unauthorised card fraud so they’re never be left out of pocket if the worst happens 

It’s still important to keep your card safe and report any lost or stolen cards to your provider straight away. And if you lose it, you can also temporarily freeze your card straight away, so nobody else can use it.

You should also check your account(s) regularly and contact your card provider as soon as possible if you spot something you don't recognise.

More information

Setting up your digital wallet

If you’d like to find out more about how are cards work and the cards features available within our App, visit our cards hub.