Contactless payments could be raised to £100 following Brexit agreement

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Barclaycard revealed it has processed over 25m contactless payments above £30 since the new £45 limit was introduced, with a total value of over £900m.
UK consumers turned their back on cash during the pandemic, with one in four payments in 2020 made using contactless or faster payment methods.

The limit for contactless card payments could more than double under new proposals being considered by the regulator now the UK has left the EU.  

The limit for contactless payments was raised from £30 to £45 last April at the start of the pandemic but could not be raised further due to a limit imposed by the EU.

There has been a considerable shift to contactless payments during the pandemic. In September contactless payments accounted for 64 per cent of all debit card transactions and 46 per cent of credit card payments, according to UK Finance. 

Contactless payments were initially introduced in 2007 with a £10 ceiling but industry body UK Finance has in recent weeks pitched an increase to the Treasury in the wake of Brexit.

The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) today said it would be launching a consultation on a possible increase in the contactless limit to £100.

The announcement came as part of a wider update on consumer credit by the regulator.

It announced an extension of its current mortgage firms which means firms cannot enforce repossession before 1 April 2021, except in exceptional circumstances. 

For consumer credit, consumers will have until the 31 January until firms can start repossessing goods and vehicles. The FCA emphasised this should only be used as a last resort and subject to public health guidelines. 

Consumers have until 31 March to apply for a payment holiday for mortgages, loans and credit cards for up to six months in total.