Payment without contact is not possible - what to do?
If contactless payment at the checkout with your EC or credit card is not possible, there can be various reasons for this. However, it is often easy to fix the problem yourself. We tell you here what you can do.
Payment without contact is not possible: causes and solutions
If you hold your EC or credit card with the contactless logo at the card terminal in the store, the device recognizes the card within a second. To do this, it is sufficient to hold the card one to two centimeters away from the terminal. If this does not work and the device does not respond, the following reasons may exist:
- The first time you make contactless payments with the card, you must enter the PIN again and insert the card. This is normal and is for safety.
- Contactless payment does not work in some branches, although this has been announced. Because many businesses - especially if they are managed independently - first have to negotiate a new contract with VISA and MasterCard. So it's best to ask in the shop whether a customer has already paid contactlessly here.
- If the message "Reading error" (or similar) appears on the display, another card nearby is usually the problem. For example, if you still have your wallet with your ID card right next to the terminal.
- Note: When making contactless payments, look at the display of the card terminal. Every now and then you have to enter the PIN for security reasons, even with small amounts. This varies from bank to bank.
Contactless payment does not work: check card
Another common reason is that the credit card is broken. If it is held near a magnet, it can lose its NFC function. Contactless payments are processed via this and are then no longer possible. You can check this with an app and an NFC-enabled cell phone:
- The free NFC check card reader app can be downloaded on a smartphone with the NFC feature and read the card. However, only data such as the card number and the expiry date are read out.
- First of all, download the Android app credit card reader NFC.
- While the app is being downloaded, you can activate the NFC function on your smartphone.
- Then open the app and hold the EC or credit card against the back of the smartphone.
- If the smartphone recognizes your card and displays card information, the card still works. If the app does not show anything, the credit card is apparently defective. You should then have your bank send you a new card.
- Tip: In Cardscout's credit card comparison, you will find many free credit cards with which you can make contactless payments.
On the next page we show how you can pay with your smartphone.