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Our contactless cards

Contactless payments
Contactless payment limits
Contactless payments abroad
Blocking contactless payments
FAQs

Contactless payments

Contactless payments allow you to pay quickly and securely. Here’s how they work.

  1. You tap your card on a card reader (available at most retailers across the UK).
  2. The reader tries to connect and checks you’ve got enough money in your account.
  3. If successful, the payment should be made in just a few seconds.

Contactless payment limits

Contactless payment limits control the maximum amount that can be spent in a contactless payment without entering your PIN. One limit applies to UK payments and one to payments made abroad (can be set to minimum £5, maximum £100 and the default is £100).

Limits will never stop you from being able to pay, but you’ll need to enter your PIN when the amount is above:

  • your contactless limit
  • a foreign country’s maximum contactless limit (even if that’s lower than the limit you’ve set for payments abroad)

Sometimes we’ll ask you to enter your PIN regardless of what your limit is. This is for security, so we can verify it’s you. Read more about how we keep you safe from fraud.

Contactless payments abroad

Contactless transactions are available in many other countries and can be the normal way to pay for small transactions. You can pay this way wherever you see the contactless symbol. Or you can use chip and PIN wherever you see the Visa symbol.

Some countries have a lower maximum contactless limit than your limit. If this happens, you’ll need to enter your PIN if your payment is over their limit.

Our fees for card payments abroad in the local currency are:

  • debit card payments – no fee
  • credit card payments – 2.75% currency conversion fee

Check your transaction’s possible cost with Visa's exchange rate calculator.

Find out more about using your card abroad.

Blocking contactless payments

You can block contactless payments in our mobile app or online banking. Read more about card controls.

FAQs

No. As contactless is only available for transactions under £100, you'll need to pay via Chip & PIN for any total above that.

None – There are no charges for using contactless, it is a fee-free payment option for all customers.

Our cards ask for a PIN after a few contactless payments are made. This will protect you if your card is stolen and someone tries to use it lots of times.

I have mislaid my card

If you think you may find your card, you can freeze the card so it cannot be used.

If you find your card again, you can instantly turn off card freeze.

How do I freeze my card?

You can freeze your card in online banking or the mobile app.

To freeze your card in online banking:

  1. Go to 'Cards'.
  2. Choose your card.
  3. Select 'Card freeze'.
  4. Select ‘Freeze card’ to turn the card freeze on.

You can instantly turn off card freeze by selecting ‘Unfreeze card’.

To freeze your card in the mobile app:

  1. Go to 'Card'.
  2. Choose your card.
  3. Toggle the card freeze switch to ‘on’.

You can instantly turn off card freeze by toggling the switch to ‘off’.

I don't recognise a payment on my statement

Call 0345 600 6000 as soon as possible if you don't recognise a payment on your statement.

Call charges apply.

As with other types of credit and debit cards, transactions are usually processed within two or three working days.

Contactless payment readers are all programmed to take only one payment for a single transaction, so it's very unlikely that you'd ever be charged twice.

Yes, but it will depend on the individual retailer. Again, if you see the wave symbol, that means the retailer takes contactless. If they don't, you'll still be able to pay via Chip & PIN wherever you see the VISA logo.