My Favorite Business Resources
- Cheap Business Phone Service - Make phone calls anywhere for free or darn close to it.
- Cheap Printing - Always amazing deals on cheap printing with loads of free items.
- Manage Mobile Phone Costs - Great phone for controlling cell phone costs for business or teenagers.
- Really Good Web Hosting - As bullet proof as there is. A strong hosting provider with all the resources you need.

My Favorite Credit Resources
- Consolidate Your Debt - One monthly payment. Stop collection calls.
- Help Budgeting - Online and easy.
- Lower Your Car Payment - Refinance to reduce your monthly payment.
- Credit Report / Credit Score - This consolidated report is better than most.
- Credit Cards - Find the best card for you for low rates, balance transfer, credit rebuilding and rewards.

Dec

2007

So I Got My New Contactless Debit Card

Posted by Steve Rhode as Credit Cards, Debit Cards

If you're new here, you may want to subscribe to my RSS feed right now, before you forget, to get the latest posts. Thanks for visiting!

I got a surprise in the mail the other day. My debit card was replaced with the new MasterCard PayPlus contactless debit card.

The first contactless payment system I used was the paypass at Mobil gas stations. When that started they originally issued small antennas that mounted in your car and the pump read them and charged your gas to your account.

There must have been some problem with that implementation and soon they went to a small key fob that you held up against the pump. Once I got used to it, it was great to be able to pull up to the pump, fill the tank, wave the key fob and drive away. You could also run inside the store and grab a bag or ships and a soda and walk away with waving your key fob. I have to admit it was nice to be able to make purchases without carrying any currency.

I especially miss that convenience since I moved to the UK. In the UK there are very few places you can pay at the pump. You still have to go into the store to pay. How 1972!

I remember reading a study a few years ago which showed that the average per transaction purchase was higher using the contactless cards. I assume it is because of less delay in making the purchase. Our brains donÃ¢â‚¬â„¢t have time to tell us to Ã¢â‚¬Å“put it backÃ¢â‚¬?.

I did find it ironic that upon my arrival in the UK there was a flurry of activity to replace all the swipe cards with PIN cards for Ã¢â‚¬Å“increased securityÃ¢â‚¬? and now the next wave is contactless cards, less secure maybe? This is a good time to be a card manufacturer.

Contactless cards are already being tested in London at some merchants and on the underground to pay for fares using the Oyster card.

DonÃ¢â‚¬â„¢t scoff at contactless cards, they are coming, so get used to it now.

I did enjoy the example in the video of the card in the cab in New York, that would be nice,

Steve

-----

If you enjoyed this post be sure to grab the RSS feed or get posts by email so you don't miss a bit of what's to come.

Steve