40 per cent of high street stores offer contactless payment, according to mystery shopper study by ICM Research – but only 11 per cent visibly promoted it as an option in-store.

Half of the sales assistants in these shopper visits didn’t know whether the shop took contactless payments, and a quarter gave out the wrong information on payment limits. 

The study was focused on contactless cards – finding that 32 per cent of those that have a contactless card have ever used it – but the findings apply to mobile payments too, especially on the part of the reailer.

40 per cent of respondents said theyd use contactless payment more if it was offered in the shops they visited most commonly, showing that retailers adoption of the technology is key in driving adoption among consumers.

“There is a huge opportunity for retailers to drive revenues by developing and implementing a successful contactless payments strategy,” said ICM associate director Jamie Belnikoff, who led the research. “However, as is often the case with new technology, it takes time to catch on, and there’s work to be done to communicate the advantages of contactless payment. The main challenge sits with retailers who have the opportunity to take advantage of high consumer awareness and appetite, much of which has been built by financial services providers.”