Major change to ALL checkouts across UK as key deadline passes in huge shake-up for shoppers
SHOPPERS across the UK are facing a major shift at supermarket checkouts.
At the centre of the shake-up is the £100 spending cap that has quietly shaped daily purchases.
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The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has closed a consultation that could lead to the removal of the current contactless cap, impacting customers at Tesco, Sainsbury's, Asda, Morrisons and other major supermarkets and retailers.
The change, if approved, would affect millions of transactions each day and could make paying quicker and more convenient.
At present, contactless payments are capped at £100, meaning anything over that requires chip and PIN or an alternative method.
The consultation, which ended on 9 May, was part of wider work announced in January aimed at modernising the UK's payment system and supporting economic growth.
It followed a letter sent to Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer by FCA chief executive Nikhil Rathi, outlining steps to support innovation in financial services.
Mr Rathi said removing the limit would offer greater flexibility to both customers and retailers, and bring the UK in line with other countries, particularly the United States, where such limits do not apply.
David Geale, executive director of payments and digital assets at the FCA, said: 'Currently 85 per cent of people in the UK make contactless card payments each month.
"This is the perfect opportunity to explore whether we can improve and increase trust in the UK's payments system.'
The Treasury has also expressed support for the move.
Economic Secretary Emma Reynolds described the review as a 'welcome step' that could give families 'more flexibility when making purchases safely.'
Despite the possible changes, the FCA confirmed that consumer protections will remain in place. If a contactless card is lost or stolen and used fraudulently, banks will still be required to refund the customer under current legislation.
However, there are some concerns about the impact on fraud levels.
Jana Mackintosh, managing director of payments and innovation at UK Finance, said: 'Having a contactless limit is important in terms of fraud prevention, but we believe overall limits and the number of times a customer needs to enter a PIN should be determined by industry rather than the regulator.'
Retailers have generally welcomed the idea, suggesting that lifting the cap could help reduce queues at busy times and make shopping even more efficient.
Some shoppers, however, have raised concerns about security and spending control.
The FCA has not yet confirmed whether the limit will be removed or simply raised, but a decision is expected later this year after reviewing responses to the consultation.
For now, the £100 limit still applies, but shoppers should stay alert to future updates as a major change to the way we pay could be just around the corner.
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