Card Present Transactions are face-to-face transactions where your customer and their card are with you at the point of sale.
Chip and PIN
Chip and PIN is the usual way to accept card payments on your terminal when the card and cardholder are present. Some customers, however, will continue to sign to authorise payments and this could be due to an impairment that prevents them from inputting their PIN. Some cardholders will still have magnetic stripe only cards and these must not be refused at the point of sale. Find out more below in When a signature is needed.
Chip cards have a contact plate like this:
Before you start
Are you sure that the card belongs to the person presenting it? If you are suspicious, you could ask the cardholder for other identification such as a driving licence or a passport.
A step-by-step guide (chip and PIN)
Ask the cardholder to insert their card into the chip reader slot on your terminal or separate PIN entry device.
Following the terminal prompts, key in the full amount of the transaction.
Your terminal will now usually ask the cardholder to enter their PIN. If it doesn't, this could be because the cardholder has a card that does not support chip and PIN technology (such as a chip-and-signature or magnetic-stripe-and-signature card). Your terminal will advise which method is required – always follow the prompts on the terminal. Ask the cardholder to check that the transaction amount is correct and ask them to enter their PIN.
Most terminals will then authorise the transaction automatically..
Wait for the terminal to print out a terminal receipt.
Only give the cardholder the goods they are buying when you have received authorisation and completed the card transaction. If authorisation is not given, do not go ahead with the transaction. Ask your customer for an alternative payment method.
Complete the transaction on the terminal by asking the cardholder to take their card from the terminal and giving your customer the goods they have purchased along with their copy of the terminal receipt.
Keep your copy of all terminal receipts in a secure fireproof place for at least 18 months in case there is a query later. Do not alter them in any way. If there is a dispute, the cardholder's copy will normally be taken as correct. If you are not able to produce a terminal receipt when asked to, there may be a chargeback.