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Barclaycard NFC technology deployed ahead of a potential roll out across 350 stores

Barclaycard NFC technology deployed ahead of a potential roll out across 350 stores

 

Barclays and Barclaycard announced today that 25 Wilkinson stores will be trialling contactless payments ahead of a potential roll out of the technology across its estate.

 

With over four million customers a week, Wilkinson is the first in its sector to trial contactless and the payments system should allow many of its customers to purchase their items quicker and more easily.

 

A spokesperson for Wilkinson was expecting contactless to prove popular with customers: “We know that many of our customers have to shop at peak times and this is when queues can occur. We believe contactless will help those customers who are under time pressure and wish to buy goods below the £15 threshold. Contactless also fits perfectly with our aim to constantly improve customer service and satisfaction by harnessing the latest retail technologies.”

 

Finding right payments fit

 

The Wilkinson trial stores have been chosen because they experience high volumes of customers at peak times.

 

Contactless allows users to pay for goods and services under £15 by simply holding their card on a reader without the need to enter a PIN or sign their name. Research carried out last year by Barclaycard and Barclays revealed that shoppers are less inclined to wait in queues, with two fifths of us refusing to queue for longer than two minutes, and two-thirds of us regularly abandoning purchases. Additionally, half (51%) of shoppers refuse to even enter a store if they see a queue.

 

Richard Armstong, head of UK payment acceptance at Barclaycard, commented: “By offering contactless payments Wilkinson will be joining other well known brands, including Little Chef, EAT, Prêt-A-Manger, The Co-Operative and Wembley Arena. Since the beginning of 2010 the number of contactless terminals has risen from 25,000 to 52,000 and the volume of contactless transactions has continued to grow rapidly, doubling every six to eight months.”