UK Consumers Lack Knowledge Of Contactless Payment

A new study suggests that banks and retailers in the UK need to encourage the use of contactless bank cards, after new research from YouGov revealed lack of awareness of the technology among consumers.

The study polled almost 3,000 UK adults and found that 12% of them know they own a card that allows contactless payments. However, recent figures from the UK Cards Association show that there are in fact 19.6 million active contactless bank cards in the UK, which means that about one in three Britons already owns such a card.

It was also revealed that 80% of these card owners have never used them for contactless payment, whereas a modest 5% do so more than once a week.

In addition, two in three of those surveyed have difficulties answering the question on whether their bank provides the service, which highlights the need for information to be supplied to consumers.

Almost three-quarters of contactless card owners have a card from Barclays, with other brands like MBNA and LloydsTSB lagging behind with 10% and 5% respectively. Barclays was also the most well-known provider of the technology, as two out of three respondents were aware of its contactless payment products.

Big brands that currently support contactless payment include McDonald’s and Starbucks and the number is constantly growing but the public is largely unaware of the service. Just 8% of those polled in fact knew that the fast food chain offered such a form of payment, Russell Feldman, associate director in YouGov’s technology and telecoms team, explained.