Bank Cards: Fraud

(asked on 20th October 2021) - View Source

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps he plans to take to monitor potential increased fraudulent use of contactless cards following the payment limit increase to £100.


Answered by
John Glen Portrait
John Glen
Paymaster General and Minister for the Cabinet Office
This question was answered on 25th October 2021

Since 15 October 2021, consumers and businesses have been able to take advantage of new higher contactless payments limits.

The legal contactless payment limits were raised by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) through changes to the Strong Customer Authentication rules in March 2021. The FCA has the power to amend these limits subject to public consultation and Treasury approval.

In line with this process, the FCA publicly consulted on increasing contactless limits. In making this decision the FCA fully considered the risks to customers, including the potential impacts on fraud, alongside the benefits. When the limits were last raised in Spring 2020 from £30 to £45 there was no significant recorded increase in the fraudulent use of contactless cards.  Similarly, no material increase in fraudulent transactions has been observed in other countries where the contactless limit increased to the equivalent of £100 or above. The FCA continues to monitor fraud rates across all payment types and will consider action as appropriate if fraud rates rise.

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