MSE News

Tesco set to get rid of £30 limit on Apple Pay transactions

Callum Mason | News Reporter

6 December 2018

Tesco is set to abolish the £30 limit on Apple Pay transactions in its stores.

Apple Pay allows iPhone, iPad and Apple Watch users to pay for things on their card via their device, even if they don't have their card with them.

Unlike contactless payments, which are capped at £30, there is no universal limit on the amount a customer can spend when using Apple Pay, but some retailers put their own ceiling in place.

Tesco is currently one of those, but now says it's in the process of trialling high value contactless payments with Apple Pay in a few stores, and will be looking to extend this to the rest of its stores over the coming year.

In the meantime, Tesco customers can use the Tesco Pay+ app to pay on their phones and other devices. The app works in a similar way to Apple Pay, and lets you make purchases of up to £250. Paying on it also currently gets you one extra Clubcard point for every £4 you spend. See our Tesco Clubcard guide for more information.

What is Apple Pay?

It's essentially a digital wallet. You store card details on the device then use the phone, watch or tablet to pay rather than the card itself.

In stores, you hold the device over a contactless reader, but unlike with contactless, where the payment goes through straight away, with Apple Pay you put your finger on the Touch ID sensor on your phone or double-click the side button on your watch.

This ID feature, which means only you can make the payment, is why there is no strict £30 limit involved.

The money comes out of the same account as if you used the physical card.

Is there a payment limit in most shops?

There is no standard payment limit in shops – most allow you to make unlimited value payments.

Of the major supermarkets, Sainsbury's and Morrisons allows unlimited value payments but Asda doesn't, although it says it's looking into changing this in the future.

The £30 limit imposed in Tesco stores has been a source of frustration for some customers, as seen in the tweets below:

@Tesco why do you limit @Apple Pay payments to £30?? Pretty much everywhere else has no limit. Very annoying.
— Ben McNeill (@benmcneill) December 5, 2018

@Tesco why cannot I tap with my Applepay in your store if my bill is over €30??? 😡 only store where I can’t do it... even my local pop up shop had this facility 🤔
— Marie-Christine (@MC_McS_Galway) December 1, 2018

C’mon @Tesco, Apple Pay has no limit now. Stop with the £30 limit if paying through the phone!
— JJ (@jjclarke101) November 18, 2018

But now the supermarket giant has said on social media: "We are currently in the process of trialling high value contactless payment with Apple Pay in a few of our stores and will be looking to extend this offer to the rest of our stores estate over the coming year."

Tesco confirmed to us that technical improvements would allow it to roll out the ability to make payments over £30 to all its stores.

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Tesco set to get rid of £30 limit on Apple Pay transactions

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