Tapping to pay is about to be even easier for U.S. consumers

Millions of Chase customers in the U.S. will soon be able to speed through checkout with a tap of a contactless Visa card. While contactless payment technology has been widely used in places like Canada, the U.K. and Australia, it’s new for most American consumers. What do they need to know to take advantage of this convenient and secure way to pay?

1. It’s fast and easy 
A single, simple tap with a contactless-enabled Visa card, mobile phone, smart watch or other wearable device is all it takes to make a payment. All these forms of payment use short-range wireless technology, known as Near Field Communication, to initiate fast, secure transactions between the card or device and the checkout terminal.

2. It’s widely accepted in the U.S. 
Customers can tap their card or device to pay where they see the Contactless Symbol at a checkout terminal. More than 50 percent of all in-person Visa transactions happen at a contactless-enabled merchant in the U.S. The numbers rise at high-transaction volume merchants with low average purchase amounts where the speed and convenience of tapping to pay can save valuable time. According to AT Kearney, 79 percent of quick service restaurants, 77 percent of drug stores and pharmacies and 61 percent of food and grocery stores in the U.S. employ the technology.

 

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