Originally Posted by
ICEROCK
So signature is only eliminated within US, when you travel to Europe, you still have to sign the bill?
My understanding is that AmEx eliminated the requirement worldwide while the others have mostly limited it to North America (I don't recall the specifics offhand). Of course, this doesn't mean that merchants will necessarily follow though.
Originally Posted by
ICEROCK
Thanks for the info! I was wondering how the elimination of the signature in US will impact the usage in Europe. Do they really compare the singnature with your card, because none of credit cards are signed? lol
I can't comment on the rest of Europe but I don't recall signatures being looked at all that closely in the UK late last year. Then again, I used Apple Pay for almost everything; the hotels were some of the only places that needed the physical card.
Originally Posted by
JBord
By the way, I'm still signing often in the US too. While the cards may have eliminated the requirement, I suspect individual merchants may still have their own rules, or terminals that are programmed to print a signature slip. I don't have to sign in my grocery store now, but I do at my dry cleaner and restaurants (which may just be a mechanism for reminding people of the tip).
Actually, I think a lot of smaller merchants might never get rid of the requirement (or will take an extremely long time to do so) simply because they don't trust that they won't get screwed over by chargebacks. Not that collecting signatures will necessarily help with that, mind you, since I'm not sure they'll even be considered proof anymore.
Originally Posted by
JBord
How widely is apple pay accepted in Europe? Is it really that easy with the handheld readers most restaurants and cafes use?
I haven't used apple pay yet, but would learn it and consider using it for my next trip to Europe in July if this is true. Sorry if these are rookie questions, I've been reluctant to try the mobile pay apps thus far.
The major networks have mandated that every terminal in Europe support contactless/NFC payment by 2020 (?). In fact, I suspect the vast majority are already there if my recent UK experience is any indication.
Honestly, I almost feel as though NFC is wasted on the US and that we shouldn't have gotten Apple Pay, etc. anywhere near first. Then again, most merchants would have purchased chip-enabled terminals without the hardware at all if Apple wasn't there to push things along.
Originally Posted by
dulciusexasperis
I live in Canada where we have true Chip and PIN cards like the rest of the world
I'd be careful with generalizations like that. Mexico, for example, is still predominantly chip and signature (though some debit cards are beginning to require PIN now).
Originally Posted by
dulciusexasperis
I'm guessing you are just 'tapping' the card on the merchants card reader.
Contactless cards are extremely uncommon in the US since the banks have decided to discontinue/skip over them in favor of mobile wallets. Of course, those aren't doing so well here either for various reasons, which may partly explain the various measures the networks are taking now to make chip and signature/nothing "faster" (such as allowing insert/removal before the total's known).
Originally Posted by
JBord
Ultimately, the US needs to move to the chip & pin system.
Which won't happen unless it's federally mandated. (Long story, but it would actually be a significant hassle for possibly little reward. Especially since a lot of merchants have taken their cue from the banks and installed equipment incapable of accepting PINs.)