Contactless card payments on the rise, says new report

More than 90 per cent of card transactions in 2021 were contactless, says Barclaycard in a recent report.

According to the card provider’s data, the value of contactless payments rose by more than 40 per cent during 2021, a figure that reflected the increase in the contactless limit from £45 to £100 in October.

Individually, the average contactless user made 180 contactless payments in 2021, worth a total of £2,293, an increase from 2020, when users made on average 141 payments worth £1,640.

Jose Carvalho, head of consumer products at Barclaycard, said: “Our data shows many shoppers have welcomed the £100 increase to the contactless limit and are now choosing to pay this way for goods and services in-store.

“Unsurprisingly, many consumers are also increasingly reluctant to touch cash or pin pads when they go to shops, which is why innovations that enable a low-touch experience, such as contactless payments, have really grown in popularity.”

Barclaycard claims that the timesaving associated with contactless payments has also been a factor.

“The increase to the £100 payment limit has been a great opportunity to take friction out of the purchase experience,” said Rob Cameron, CEO of Barclaycard Payments.

“This is especially the case in busy stores where queues can quickly build up; the faster that line moves through, the more likely shoppers are to have a good experience and want to come back. Speed at the checkout will often avoid shoppers going elsewhere, which is why the limit increase is a win-win for cardholders and merchants.”