Contactless card limit set to rise to £100 from £45

SHOPPERS could soon make contactless payments for transactions worth up to £100.

The contactless limit was increased from £30 to £45 at the start of last year as the coronavirus pandemic began to spread across the UK.

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Now City watchdog the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has said it is considering raising the limit from £45 to £100.

The regulator said: "Since the limit for contactless card payments was raised to £45 last April at the start of the pandemic, people are increasingly making use of contactless payments.

"It’s important that payments regulation keeps pace with consumer and merchant expectations."

The World Health Organisation last year suggested ditching cash for contactless payments to fight the spread of coronavirus.

Shops have encouraged customers to pay with a contactless card throughout the pandemic.

This reduces the risk of spreading the virus by minimising physical contact at the till.

Rather than handing over cash, shoppers can simply tap their card or smartphone on a reader to make a payment.

Contactless payments also mean shoppers avoid having to touch the card reader and it minimises queuing time to help with social distancing.

Cash use has plummeted as people turn to paying in this covid-secure way.

The FCA said it will be seeking views on upping the limit as part of a wider consultation reflecting changing behaviour in how people pay.

Meanwhile, a glitch meant Morrisons shoppers couldn't use their contactless cards earlier this week.

Supermarkets are among many shops which have urged people to pay with cards rather than cash during the pandemic.

And a number of the nationwide chains have said they will refuse entry to shoppers who don't wear face masks, apart from those who are exempt, in a bid to tackle the spread of the virus.