27 November 2006
Contactless, or wave-and-pay cards, are being launched by Visa and are expected to arrive in the UK before the end of the year.
Designed for small payment usage, for the morning paper and coffee for example, Visa hopes that the card will save consumers time and be more convenient than the current swipe and sign or chip and Pin methods currently available.
Visa claims the transactions only take a second to complete, reducing queues and saving time at checkouts.
Sandra Alzetta, Visa Europe's senior vice-president of consumer market development, said: "With over 75% of all cash payments being less than £10, the introduction of contactless payments will play a major role in encouraging the use of cards over cash for low value transactions."
Critics say that the wave-and-pay option will make it easier for fraudsters and thieves to use the cards, but Visa claims that the £10 maximum limit for any transaction will limit its attraction for potential pickpockets.
Early trials in Scotland have proved popular with retailers liking the reduced hassle and not having to haul money around and consumers approving of the ease and convenience of the new payment method.
Mastercard and the Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) are to trial the system on 1,000 debit cards belonging to bank staff at the retail outlets at RBS' Edinburgh campus head quarters.
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