Q: Payment limits (UK)

It would be handy to have a complete list of vendors that accept Apple Pay in the UK and a list of their payment limits. There must be very few stores that have larger payment limits that the £20/£30 cap.

Hey,

I believe that Pret A Manger and M&S allow payments of any amount. Not sure about any other stores.

Have a good one  

In my case I wanted to use Apple Pay at Waitrose for an amount above £20 and it did not accept me. I contacted Amex and they told me the limit amount of money is the same for contactless plastic cards.

You need to remember that the watch is treated just like a plastic cards from the readers point of view.

Whilst removing your watch stops the payment system working and removing wrist detection removes the card from your watch, plastic cards have no such protection. If you drop your contactless card in the street the person finding it needs no signatures, PIN numbers or the like to start spending your money, you really wouldn't want the finder to get much more than a round of drinks without more protection.

Winston Churchill wrote:

 

You need to remember that the watch is treated just like a plastic cards from the readers point of view.

This only applies for lower value payments. As Apple Watch and iPhone are not the same as plastic cards, suitably equipped terminals can treat them differently. This is what enables them (and other NFC-equipped devices with similar features) to be used for higher value contactless payments than plastic cards.

 

Winston Churchill wrote:

 

 

 

Whilst removing your watch stops the payment system working and removing wrist detection removes the card from your watch, plastic cards have no such protection. If you drop your contactless card in the street the person finding it needs no signatures, PIN numbers or the like to start spending your money, you really wouldn't want the finder to get much more than a round of drinks without more protection.

 

The standard limit for contactless payments in the UK is presently £20. This will soon rise (September 2015) to £30 for all contactless cards and devices.

The payment system can also support higher / "high value" mobile contactless payments.

What enables Apple Pay on Apple Watch and iPhone to use this - and what sets them apart from plastic cards - is that the devices themselves incorporate a verification method. iPhone uses Touch ID and a passcode; Apple Watch uses Wrist Detection and a passcode. This adds an extra layer of security that is similar to Chip and PIN.

Unless already supported, merchants need to update their payment terminal software in order to accept high value mobile contactless payments. This - along with the fact that the capability is still relatively new - is the main reason why not all contactless-enabled retailers can yet accept Apple Pay for sums over £20 in the UK (or over £30 after the change in the standard contactless threshold).

This only applies for lower value payments. As Apple Watch and iPhone are not the same as plastic cards,

The point I was hoping to make was they are the same so far as a standard reader is concerned hence the lower limits.

The payment system can also support higher / "high value" mobile contactless payments.

I'm aware that higher limits can apply in other circumstances, but was merely explaining why the lower limit applied in so many cases when the watch/phone is generally perceived to be substantially more secure than your plastic card. some of the posters above didn't seem to understand this.

Hi all,

I know the limit is due to rise to £30 in September, but does anybody know when in September this will happen? From the 1st or some other date in the month? 

swampsnake wrote:

 

I know the limit is due to rise to £30 in September, but does anybody know when in September this will happen? From the 1st or some other date in the month?

The increased limit was previously described as being due for roll out between 1 September and the end of October, so it may be prudent to expect a mixed experience within that period.

I was in the local Co-Op at the weekend and they have Apple pay logo's around their chip and pin machines. I took the time to read the very small print on it, and it says that there is no limit when using Apple pay for your shopping.  Happy days.

And yes, it would be nice if there was a definitive list of shops and whether they have the £30 limit, or no limits.

Mark Burr wrote:

 

it would be nice if there was a definitive list of shops and whether they have the £30 limit, or no limits.

Hi Mark

If you would like Apple to consider publishing a list of merchants where Apple Pay is accepted for high value payments, you can let Apple know here (you should not expect to receive a reply, but all submissions are read):

https://www.apple.com/feedback/apple-pay.html

I've already done that Jonathan, but I did just fill it in again for good measure