Contactless Cards To Hit 12 Million

Visa has announced that the number of its contactless payment cards being used across the country could reach 12 million by the end of 2010. 

The company first estimated that only 10 million of the new debt, credit and pre-pay cards would be in use by the end of December. But Visa Europe changed its first prediction after the number of contactless cards being used in the UK exceeded eight million in June. 

The upwards trend looks set to continue in the second half of the year as more banks begin to introduce the cards to customers. It added that the number of transactions carried out with them doubled during the past six months. 

Contactless payment cards enable people to pay for items simply by holding their card against a reader, without having to enter their pin. Visa increased the maximum value of an item that can be paid for in this way from £10 to £15 earlier this year, and the average value of a contactless transaction is £4.30. 

Around 26,000 outlets across the UK accept contactless payments, including Subway, Pret A Manger, some Boots outlets, selected branches of Spar, Ikea and a number of independent convenience stores.