Shoppers left fuming as card payments go down across UK

Posted by Admin July 11, 2024 Shopping

SHOPPERS were left fuming after being unable to pay using their cards at retailers across the UK.

Major retailers including Asda, McDonald’s and Sainsbury’s were all been affected by the technical issues.

Visa has gone down this morning leaving shoppers unable to make purchasesCredit: Getty

The issues appeared to stem from a provider which helps process card payments for some retailers.

Worldline said it had experienced a service disruption which meant some retailers may have faced problems processing transactions in store, between about 9am and 10am.

It later said the service had been fully restored but apologised for the temporary outages.

At the height of the outage, more than 600 people were reporting problems with the car provider Visa, according to DownDetector.

It looks like the issues began at around 8am this morning.

Reports of problems with Mastercard climbed on Downdetector, with 130 reports at its height.

Visa said it was aware of the issues this morning, but that the issues wwere now resolved, adding that its systems were operating normally.

Mastercard told The Sun its operations were working normally but that it was aware that cardholders were experiencing issues.

People took to X, formerly Twitter, to complain that they had taken their shopping baskets to the till but been told that they could not pay by card, or had seen “cash only” signs temporarily placed in stores.

One shopper said: “Card machines in stores seem to be down across the United Kingdom I’m hearing reports of similar in France too.”

Another added: “Huge issues with card payments in Asda and ATMs in my area seems to be countrywide, with long queues, machines not working, card declined.”

A third wrote: “Just did a whole shop in Asda and got to the till and told card payments aren’t working across supermarkets/shops in the UK.”

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Asda has since stated that its card payment services are now operating as normal.

While a fourth shopper posted: “No card payments being taken in North West England this morning. ATM’s still OK.”

A Sainsbury’s shopper added: “Good thing I had cash on me this morning, Sainsbury’s card machines are down, again.”

One customer shared a photograph of a sign in their local Sainsbury’s supermarket, which read: “Cash only. We apologise, we’re currently unable to take payments on Argos cards, contactless and mobile devices.

“We’re working to resolve this issue. Please pay using cash or SmartShop app.”

A Sainsbury’s spokesperson told The Sun that the issue in its supermarkets has been resolved and card payments are back up and running.

McDonald’s has also been affected by the outage, with customers complaining that their local drive-thru was cash only.

Another said: “McDonald’s what a s*** show – cash only but didn’t think to put signs up before your drive-thru to warn people idiocy.”

A Visa spokesperson said: “While Visa’s systems are operating normally, we are working with our partners to investigate.”

Link, which runs the UK’s cash machines, said it was not aware of people having issues withdrawing cash from ATMs.

Meanwhile, a Mastercard spokesperson said: “We are aware of some payment transaction issues at select merchants in the UK and are working with our partners to gather more information.

“There is no current indication that these issues are related to our network.”

The Sun has reached out to all affected retailers for comment.

We will keep you updated on these payment issues and let you know when they’ve been resolved.

What to do if you can’t use your card

Don’t get caught out without access to your money.

You never know when payment problems could occur, so it’s vital to make sure that you aren’t caught short.

Take cash with you if you can and if you have other credit or debit cards make sure that you bring these along

Keep receipts and a record of any extra costs you incur should you need to claim it back.

It comes after Tesco customers were left fuming when contactless payments went down at all UK supermarkets.

Reports suggested that other supermarket giants, such as Sainsbury’s, were also experiencing the same outage.

How to check if your bank is down

THERE are a few different ways to find out if your bank is experiencing an outage.

Senior consumer reporter Olivia Marshall explains how you can check.

If you’re trying to send money to someone, or you just want to check if you have enough cash for a coffee, finding your online banking is down can be a real pain.

Most banks have a dedicated news page on their website to show service problems, including internet banking, mobile apps, ATMs, debit cards and credit cards.

You can also check on any future work they have planned and what it might mean for you.

Plus, you can check websites such as Down Detector, which will tell you whether other people are experiencing problems with a particular company online.

Do you have a money problem that needs sorting? Get in touch by emailing money-sm@news.co.uk.

Plus, you can join our Sun Money Chats and Tips Facebook group to share your tips and stories