Will EMV Lead to More Lost Cards?

As businesses and users adapt to the new EMV chip cards, there’s been some grumbling by both customers and merchants. The new cards require vendors to invest in new equipment; some haven’t yet bothered, although it’s now past the deadline and the new cards impose more liability on the store. Some vendors have the new equipment but still have users slide their cards rather than insert them into the chip reader; because the chip readers are slower (they can take as long as 18 seconds to process), they can hold up a line. Those vendors would rather take the risk of losing money due to a counterfeit card than losing money due to a customer’s walking away rather than wait in line.

Impatient People Lose Cards

The same impatience that has customers step out of line rather than wait 18 seconds for a previous customer to finish their transaction also ups the risk that customers will lose their cards.

The main reason customers may lose cards is that they’re out of the customers’ hands longer, increasing the odds that they’ll simply rush away without reclaiming them. When users swipe a card, they never let go of it. With the EMV cards, customers insert the card and then let go. They have to remember to remove it from the machine and take it with them at the end of the payment process.

When paying at a restaurant, cards are out of the customers’ hands even longer than the 18 seconds the transaction takes. Customers are used to handing over a card and having it brought back with the receipt to be signed; they add their tip, calculate the new total, and simply leave. But because the new cards need to be inserted for the entire authorization process, this process changes. The customer’s card can’t be returned until after the tip is added and the final amount approved. For customers who aren’t used to this process, or are in a hurry to leave (particularly if service was slow), the odds of forgetting a card go up again.

Returning Cards Faster

Fortunately, changes are on the way that will help customers hang onto their cards.

The card makers are upgrading the authorization process to make it faster, or at least feel faster, for customers. Users may be able to simply dip and remove their cards similar to the process used at many ATM machines. The time it takes is about the same as swiping a magnetic card, and the card won’t leave the customer’s hand, so they’re unlikely to leave it behind. Users will be able to dip and reclaim their cards while the transaction is still being rung up, rather than only at the end of the transaction, which will also make it easier to hang onto the cards.

In restaurants, the payment process is likely to move the equipment to the table, using wireless payment devices. This will mean customers don’t lose track of their cards during the payment process; the entire transaction will be completed at the table with the card and receipt handed back to the customer together. While this means the customer is less likely to leave their card at the establishment, it may add awkwardness to the transaction, as users can’t simply add a tip and walk away. They’ll have to wait until the server sees and processes the tip for the transaction to be complete.

More Adjustments to Come

Because the chip cards have been effective in reducing fraud—USA Today reported that some merchants saw fraud drop by 18 percent due to the new card technology—they aren’t going to go away. Users will continue to need to adapt to changes in card payments, as the current chip-and-signature payment method may eventually be replaced by the more secure, chip-and-pin payment method that’s commonly used in Europe. No matter what the card payment process is, keeping cards secure will require the user to remember to take their card with them once the payment process is complete.