Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

MacRumors

macrumors bot
Original poster
Apr 12, 2001
68,198
38,989


Most shop tills in the U.K. that take Apple Pay now accept mobile payments above £30, The Telegraph reported on Sunday. Jennifer Bailey, head of Apple's payment arm, said over half of contactless payment terminals in the country are now able to take Apple Pay transactions of any value.

Previously, most contactless card readers have adhered to the £30 upper limit, which is meant to prevent fraud when a pin isn't used. However, Apple's Touch ID approval system on iPhones and iPads provides the extra security to enable payments of any value.

Nationwide-Introducing-Apple-Pay-1080p-4-800x450.jpg
The upgrades, which Ms Bailey said applied to hundreds of thousands of terminals, means shoppers in many places can make payments of any value without taking their wallet with them.
Apple Pay's ability to approve high-value payments could turn out to be a significant advantage over contactless cards, following some reports that mobile payments have struggled to gain traction among consumers. The mobile wallet also has to compete against rivals Android Pay and Samsung Pay.

However, Apple says Apple Pay transactions in the U.K. have grown by 300 percent in the last year, with 23 banks now supporting the service. "Our momentum has been fantastic. We're really excited about the progress," Bailey told the Telegraph.

Retailers in the U.K. now accepting the higher-value payments include supermarkets such as Waitrose and Sainsbury's, and restaurants including Pizza Express and Nando's.

Article Link: Most U.K. Apple Pay Terminals Now Support Transactions Above £30
 
Last edited:
Great news. Apple Pay is so convenient - especially on the Apple Watch.

One thing which would be nice is updated signage/branding on the terminals which support unlimited transactions (something as simple as a sticker would work). Can be awkward when trying and failing. Some staff are also on the ball and let you know when they support over £30 transactions which reduces trial and error.
 
  • Like
Reactions: HarryT and DemetriJ
What we really need is a proper, up to date list of shops that support limitless transactions.

The article only gave us Nando's, Pizza Express, Waitrose, and Sainsbury's. We need to know the full list to avoid the acutely British embarrassment of having to ask the cashier to activate contactless on an above-£30 spend only to have it rejected as the terminal hasn't been updated.
 
In Denmark there are no limits on contactless transactions - you're just asked to enter a pin when above DKK200.

I don't know how Apple Pay reacts in those situations.
 
  • Like
Reactions: skir
Finally! I've always thought a fingerprint scanner is much more secure than a 4-digit pin-code, which the person standing in the queue behind me can invariably see me typing into the terminal anyway, as people in supermarket checkout lines seem to have no sense of personal space!
 
Last edited:
Thank goodness. I always pay for stuff that costs 50 pence by debit card and hold people up behind me in queues because I'm a tad too lazy to carry any form of cash. But this will be ideal to speed things up by a few seconds. My next port of call is the Apple store to get a watch then? I wonder if they accept Apple Pay there too? Hang on. I'll just consult my iPhone. Oh no. I knew there was something I had to get first. I'll get the phone. Then the watch. And then I'll go on the shop and buy a packet of crisps with Apple.Pay ... and in that order. Yes! Get in! :apple:
 
In Denmark there are no limits on contactless transactions - you're just asked to enter a pin when above DKK200.

I don't know how Apple Pay reacts in those situations.


You've just stated that there *IS* a limit, and it's DKK200.
The "no limit" on Apple Pay refers to NOT having to enter any pin.
Previously, you could use Apply Pay, with no pin, on transactions under £30. If the cost was more than £30, then you had to use your card and pin number.
Now you can use your Apple Pay with no pin on any purchase. No limits.
 
Great news. Apple Pay is so convenient - especially on the Apple Watch.

One thing which would be nice is updated signage/branding on the terminals which support unlimited transactions (something as simple as a sticker would work). Can be awkward when trying and failing. Some staff are also on the ball and let you know when they support over £30 transactions which reduces trial and error.

It's easy to tell. If the terminal shows the contactless symbol on its display after it has fetched the price from the POS device, it's able to be paid for using Apple Pay, regardless of amount. If it shows 'Insert or swipe card', it isn't.
 
It's easy to tell. If the terminal shows the contactless symbol on its display after it has fetched the price from the POS device, it's able to be paid for using Apple Pay, regardless of amount. If it shows 'Insert or swipe card', it isn't.

Unfortunately, this isn't 100% the case, at least here in America.

Places like my local Exxon stations, you'd never have known they accepted contactless unless you tried. They do, but the terminal only says to insert or swipe. No mention of tapping, and no contactless symbol shown. But if you tap, it works.

There are plenty of other places reported doing the same thing in the Apple Pay Wiki here on the forum. :(
 
It's easy to tell. If the terminal shows the contactless symbol on its display after it has fetched the price from the POS device, it's able to be paid for using Apple Pay, regardless of amount. If it shows 'Insert or swipe card', it isn't.

I wish that was the case. Sadly it's not - on all terminals anyway. I've been through a dance a number of timeswith the cashier when it's been rejected due to being over £30.

On the bright side most of my daily transactions are under £30 anyway.
 
Finally! I've always thought a fingerprint scanner is much more secure than a 4-digit pin-code, which the person standing in the queue behind me can invariably see me typing into the terminal anyway, as people in supermarket checkout lines seem to have no sense of personal space!
I was once behind an elderly lady in the supermarket, even though I wasn't intentionally looking I noticed her PIN was1234
 
This doesn't seem to match with the user experiences in the "Apple Pay in UK" thread on here.

Most people find that the £30 limit is still in place. Where there is no limit, those are stores that supported unlimited payment from the start.
 
I find the biggest issue is nowhere seems to advertise the limit has been removed, I note Lidl removed the limit a long time ago I found by chance when the contactless symbol was displayed for a £60 transaction, so I tried.

Yet Tesco always shows the contactless symbol so I tried and it was declined as over £30.

Apple neess compel retailers to indicate the Apple Pay logo on the terminal screen so you know you can pay over £30, opposed to the contactless logo which is essentially £30.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Adrian Andrews
Has anyone here used Apple Pay in Sainsbury's for over £30 and it went through ok?
Lots of Sainsburys still have to update their terminals for contactless of any sort first.

I believe Aldi and Lidl lifted the £30 limit some time ago.
 
I find the biggest issue is nowhere seems to advertise the limit has been removed, I note Lidl removed the limit a long time ago I found by chance when the contactless symbol was displayed for a £60 transaction, so I tried.

Yet Tesco always shows the contactless symbol so I tried and it was declined as over £30.

Apple neess compel retailers to indicate the Apple Pay logo on the terminal screen so you know you can pay over £30, opposed to the contactless logo which is essentially £30.

The last time I was shopping in Lidl, the staff were certain that the £30 limit was in place for Apple Pay as well, so they put my shopping through in 2 transactions.

You're so right though, the correct info needs to be out there so we as AP users know what and where we can use the service, either at a silly £30 limit or unlimited.
 
Lots of Sainsburys still have to update their terminals for contactless of any sort first.

My local Sainsbury's has had contactless-capable payment terminals for years, but they only finally got contactless enabled/activated in the past few months. It was simply a software update to enable it as far as I can tell.

I'm pleasantly surprised that it accepts contactless for transactions over £30 - although I rarely spend more than £30 at Sainsbury's!
 
  • Like
Reactions: keysofanxiety
The last time I was shopping in Lidl, the staff were certain that the £30 limit was in place for Apple Pay as well, so they put my shopping through in 2 transactions.

Must have been a while ago, then. Even a year ago 9to5mac readers were reporting that Lidl had lifted its limits.

https://9to5mac.com/2016/06/03/apple-pay-uk-unlimited-value-purchases/

I also found this old thread on Moneysavingexpert which may shed some light on which retailers have also lifted the £30 limit.

http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showthread.php?p=70770896
 
  • Like
Reactions: DiscoMcDisco
What we really need is a proper, up to date list of shops that support limitless transactions.

The article only gave us Nando's, Pizza Express, Waitrose, and Sainsbury's. We need to know the full list to avoid the acutely British embarrassment of having to ask the cashier to activate contactless on an above-£30 spend only to have it rejected as the terminal hasn't been updated.

They don't have to activate anything. If they accept contactless payments, they accept apple pay automatically and if they have an updated machine, it will be limitless. Discovering whether there's a limit is as simple as paying with Apple Pay as normal, at which point the response will either be a successful transaction or the message that the amount is over £30 and won't go through, at which point you get your regular card out to pay. It's pretty straightforward and, as the article states, most places are limitless now anyway.

I just use Apple Pay at every opportunity whenever I'm paying for anything and it almost always works with no issues. If it fails or they don't have contactless, I begrudgingly get my wallet out like some kind of caveman.
 
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.