More than 7 million contactless payments above the previous limit of £30, and up to the new limit of £45, have been processed by Barclaycard in less than a month since the contactless limit was increased in the UK.

Barclaycard, which according to UK Finance figures processes half of all contactless transactions in the UK, added that the total includes payments in Ireland, where the limit was lifted from €30 to €50.

The bank also suggested that the total means up to 7 million additional cardholders have been able to use contactless to make in-store payments, helping to prevent the spread of coronavirus by allowing more shoppers to pay without touching card terminals, or handling cash.

The shift towards contactless also helps reduce the volume of people in stores by reducing queue times, according to Barclaycard, which noted contactless transactions are, on average, seven seconds faster than Chip and PIN, and 15 seconds faster than cash.

Data from Barclaycard also revealed that 43% of in-store transactions between £30/€30 and £45/€50 are now made using contactless, which the bank is expecting to increase as public awareness of the new limit grows, and as more businesses implement the technology change on their card machines.

Barclaycard Payments CEO, Rob Cameron, said: “We want to play our part in helping to prevent the spread of Covid-19, so we are delighted to have reached 7 million transactions so quickly. We would like to thank our clients both large and small for working with us to make the required changes, and for promoting the new limits to consumers.

“This rapid adoption would not have been possible without them. We believe that contactless is the safest, fastest and most responsible way to pay in store, and we encourage all consumers to take advantage of the new higher limit where possible.”

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