Unauthorised contactless payment....Halifax say there’s nothing they can do.

[JacobReesMogadishu]

Dh is an nhs patient and went for a check up last week. Should have been £22.70 as per nhs fees but they charged him £36 which he thought was pricey but wasn’t sure what it should be.

He got home and realised it should only have been £22 . The invoice they gave him said private patient so he thinks they’ve charged him the private rate by accident. Ok these things happen. Although while he was queuing the woman behind him said her dh had been overcharged the previous week.

He got home and the following day they took another £29 out his account. He wasn’t there for this second payment, he hasn’t authorised it. Nobody said anything about ppe charges and even if was ppe he’s been overcharged by nearly £50 now!

He tried ringing them thurs and fri and they weren’t answering the phone and haven’t answered his email.

Dh rang the bank today and they said as it’s a contactless payment it can’t be disputed. I don’t understand how they can put through another contactless payment the following day without him being there unless they’ve cloned his card? In which case they can now put through any amount of contactless payments they want and according to the Halifax dh will have to pay them all? This can’t be right can it?

Sorry, was at the dentists.

Hmmm but if your partner wasn't there for the second transaction how was it a contact less payment?
Don't take no for an answer!

If he only tapped once then the second payment wasn't, it was cardholder not present and they would have had to get authorisation separately including the laat 3 digits on the back.
Did he get an invoice quoting 29? 36? 22.70?

I would speak to the bank again

Yes I would get onto the bank complaints line now, if possible.

Yes he only tapped once.

They must somehow either have cloned his card or keep the details as the second payment was the following day and he wasn’t there.

He has an invoice which says £36. And they shouldn’t even have charged him that because that’s private rate and he’s nhs

Bank say the second payment has gone through as contactless so he must have been there. But he wasn’t!

That's worrying. I'd keep on at both bank and dentist. Transactions must show the time?

The date on a bank statement isn't always the actual date the payment was made. But to make two payments he would have had to tap twice, and I've yet to see a contactless payment machine that didn't display the amount. There have however been sporadic reports of contactless card readers taking payment where the card was a foot away or further, mainly with early models of reader.

That's assuming your DH was always holding the card. If a member of staff took it, which staff really really should never ever do, then they had ample opportunity to take unauthorised payments.

If you're concerned about future fraudulent transactions, demand the bank cancel the card and issue a new one with a new number. Or switch your current account.

But as for getting the money back, in the first instance you should complain to the Drs surgery. Only after they have failed to resolve the issue can you ask your bank to do a "chargeback".

Could the extra be for PPE? not that it's ok to take that without notice but depends on how unscrupulous your dentist is

Sorry just read that you've thought of that already!

Has he still got the card on him? Contactless can only happen when the card is tapped or near enough to the reader to pick it up. That's on the Halifax website.

You need to speak to the dentists before doing anything else

He needs to call the bank back and explain the 2nd payment wasn't contactless or authorised. They can dispute that kind of transaction. If the person still says no, ask for it to be escalated to a complaint and tell them this unexpected transaction is causing financial hardship as you didn't budget for it. They will have up to 8 weeks to resolve.

That's assuming your DH was always holding the card. If a member of staff took it, which staff really really should never ever do, then they had ample opportunity to take unauthorised payments.

You shouldn't handing over any card for others to tap, in the same way that it shold be you only that puts a card into a reader (where contactless is possible, etc). The system is designed so that you retain the card at all times to reduce fraud.

If I'm ever asked to hand my card over, I don't, and ask that the reader is passed over to me instead.

Call the bank and ask to be put through to the fraud department as that is what it is. Beforehand, do check any correspondence DH received from dentist to make sure the additional PPE charge isn’t mentioned anywhere.

You need to speak to the dentist too.