MBNA Contactless Credit Cards Arrive In the UK
CHESTER, UK -- MBNA will begin a two-year programme today to exchange traditional cards for new contactless credit cards. As MBNA is Europe’s largest credit card lender, millions of UK customers will be adopting this new, groundbreaking technology.
MBNA is aiding the UK's adoption contactless technology by issuing the new, simple payment cards when new and replacement MBNA credit cards
are requested. Contactless technology works for transactions of up to
£15. Users won't have to enter a PIN Number when making purchases.
Instead, they will touch the new contactless card to the payment
terminal at stores that display the contactless sign. The cards are
fully compatible with Mastercard and Visa systems.
More than five million contactless technology1 MBNA-issued
credit cards will be in use by January 2012 with this new initiative.
This is over and above the estimated ten million contactless enabled
credit and debit cards already in the British market. By 20122, numbers will reach 25 million.
Users may hesitate due to the security issues they may have concerning contactless credit card payments,
but MBNA has quickly moved to reassure consumers and businesses.
Contactless cards include several security layers designed to protect
users.
Contactless payment methods will not work on transactions of £15 or more
and require a PIN the first time they're used. However, customers will
need to punch in a PIN Number to prove their identity occasionally. MBNA
customers are also fully protected in the event that they become
victims of fraud or theft.
Ian O’Doherty, the Bank of America Europe Card executive (the company
operates MBNA) explained some of the motivation behind the two-year
initiative:
"The changeover of new and replacement contactless enabled cards will
require two years and provide support for the UK's move to contactless
technology. MBNA's main commitment is to our customers -- we want to
offer choice, simplicity, and value with all the products and services
we provide. The move to contactless payments is just another great example of this.”
After surveying over 1,000 credit card users3, MBNA found
consumers are extremely pleased with the idea of adopting contactless
technology. A majority of them feel the increased speed and ease of use
will benefit their lives:
Starting today, new or replacement cards will arrive with contactless technology, without effort from consumers.
1Customers can make payments of no more than £15 with contactless credit cards by holding the card against the reader. It doesn't require a PIN Number with each transaction, making payments much faster.
More and more businesses are adopting contactless technology all the time. Subway, Prêt a Manger, Caffé Nero, and many others have contactless payment terminals installed and many other retailers are testing contactless payments or in the process of installing the terminal, including Little Chef, Spar, Co-op, Boots, and National Trust gift shops.
2Industry statistics and information on contactless credit cards can be found at http://www.contactless.info/home.asp.
3Opinion Matters performed MBNA's research online between 04/10/2010 and 08/10/2010. The research involved 1,000 credit card users. All research conducted by Opinion Matters for MBNA followed the MRS Codes of Conduct (2010) in the UK and ICC/ESOMAR World Research Guidelines.
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