Tesco contactless payments 'down' causing chaos at tills as customers complain

03 February 2024 , 13:09

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Contactless payments are reportedly down in Tesco stores across the UK (Image: PA)

Contactless payments are down in Tesco stores, reportedly causing chaos for shoppers.

Customers across the UK are reporting long queues and issues paying for their shopping in the supermarket's branches this afternoon (Saturday) after issues with their contactless system, including Apple Pay. Shoppers have rushed to social media to express their frustrations, with reports of long waits to pay.

One shopper, who asked not to be named, told The Mirror: “There are a lot of angry shoppers in store. Lots of people having to ditch their shops. We’ve had to drive home to get our card because we only had contactless on our phone.”

Donna Kirwin added that she had also experienced problems paying for her shopping online. She said he shopping was "due today" and that her payment had "failed to be taken". "[I've] spoken to someone at Tesco via phone and have basically been told to keep trying every half hour," she said.

"Technical teams [are] working on resolving it. Unsure at this point if I will get my shopping, because it's a 3pm deadline for payment for me."

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Writing on X, formerly Twitter, one angry customer said: "Stopped at a Tesco petrol garage in Barking. Huge queues, people waiting to pay. Card system is down and can only take cash.

"I’m the only one with cash on me so I’m paid and away. Imagine the carnage if we get a cashless society and the who system goes down." Another said they spent "one hour" queuing at a store in Exeter "only to find they can't accept contactless".

Tech site DownDetector shows a spike in people reporting problems at Tesco stores on Saturday, with the site flooded with complaints about in-store payments as well as paying for items through the website. Shona Catherine wrote: "Sounds like it’s a wider IT issue with all payments not using a chip and pin..."

A Tesco spokesperson said: “We have fixed a technical issue which briefly meant we were unable to accept contactless payments in store and which also impacted some online orders. We apologise for the inconvenience.”

It's not the first time shoppers have recently experienced major issues paying contactless at the supermarkets. The corporation was hit by widescale problems back in October with machines up and down the country experiencing a glitch. It followed issues at Sainsbury's branches earlier that same afternoon, prompting shoppers to vent about not being able to pay.

• Have you experienced difficulties with Tesco's contactless service or gotten stuck in queues at stores as a result this afternoon? Get in touch at [email protected].

Susie Beever