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[Frances_iom]

...

I might deliberately try to make one more purchase using the contactless card tomorrow, before walking into the bank, as I do have to be in that area anyway, so it won't be too big a problem. The time taken to get this sorted is really not acceptable.

if anything like my bank your 1st purchase with new card requires entry of your PIN

[Petrushka]

if anything like my bank your 1st purchase with new card requires entry of your PIN

When my new card was blocked for an online purchase a number of years ago after a few small contactless uses, Lloyds Bank advised me to use a new card three or four times at a cashpoint machine before using it online. Annoying as it is when your card gets blocked we have to remember that these measures do protect us against fraud which would be a whole lot more of an unpleasant experience.

[oddoneout]

When my new card was blocked for an online purchase a number of years ago after a few small contactless uses, Lloyds Bank advised me to use a new card three or four times at a cashpoint machine before using it online. Annoying as it is when your card gets blocked we have to remember that these measures do protect us against fraud which would be a whole lot more of an unpleasant experience.

Indeed. The convenience of contactless for legitimate use is counterbalanced by its equal convenience for fraudulent use, with it being possible to make numerous purchases on a stolen card easily before it gets stopped.

[kernelbogey]

I've just booked online a hotel in Paris in late August, en route to Italy, via booking.com who emailed me almost by return to say that my card is not valid. It is valid, and I use it nearly every day both in person and online.

The same happened with a hotel in Paris booked last September via booking.com. The suggestion that the card was invalid then came as we were travelling from London, with intermittent signal availability. That hotel responded unhelpfully, and we arrived there around midnight not knowing for sure that they had kept a room for us.

I had equal difficulty contacting my bank, but gathered that the bank attributed the problem to the hotel not entering the appropriate code for a 'pre-authorisation'. All other bookings via booking.com in September went pefectly well.

I'll now write to booking.com to suggest there is some glitch in the system; or perhaps Parisian hoteliers need something....

[cloughie]

I've just booked online a hotel in Paris in late August, en route to Italy, via booking.com who emailed me almost by return to say that my card is not valid. It is valid, and I use it nearly every day both in person and online.

The same happened with a hotel in Paris booked last September via booking.com. The suggestion that the card was invalid then came as we were travelling from London, with intermittent signal availability. That hotel responded unhelpfully, and we arrived there around midnight not knowing for sure that they had kept a room for us.

I had equal difficulty contacting my bank, but gathered that the bank attributed the problem to the hotel not entering the appropriate code for a 'pre-authorisation'. All other bookings via booking.com in September went pefectly well.

I'll now write to booking.com to suggest there is some glitch in the system; or perhaps Parisian hoteliers need something....

Un kick up the derriere?

[Pulcinella]

I've just booked online a hotel in Paris in late August, en route to Italy, via booking.com who emailed me almost by return to say that my card is not valid. It is valid, and I use it nearly every day both in person and online.

The same happened with a hotel in Paris booked last September via booking.com. The suggestion that the card was invalid then came as we were travelling from London, with intermittent signal availability. That hotel responded unhelpfully, and we arrived there around midnight not knowing for sure that they had kept a room for us.

I had equal difficulty contacting my bank, but gathered that the bank attributed the problem to the hotel not entering the appropriate code for a 'pre-authorisation'. All other bookings via booking.com in September went pefectly well.

I'll now write to booking.com to suggest there is some glitch in the system; or perhaps Parisian hoteliers need something....

Soon-to-be-Sir Jacob may well call it a Benefit of Brexit.

[Petrushka]

I've just booked online a hotel in Paris in late August, en route to Italy, via booking.com who emailed me almost by return to say that my card is not valid. It is valid, and I use it nearly every day both in person and online.

The same happened with a hotel in Paris booked last September via booking.com. The suggestion that the card was invalid then came as we were travelling from London, with intermittent signal availability. That hotel responded unhelpfully, and we arrived there around midnight not knowing for sure that they had kept a room for us.

I had equal difficulty contacting my bank, but gathered that the bank attributed the problem to the hotel not entering the appropriate code for a 'pre-authorisation'. All other bookings via booking.com in September went pefectly well.

I'll now write to booking.com to suggest there is some glitch in the system; or perhaps Parisian hoteliers need something....

Why not cut out the middleman and book direct with the hotel? I've never really understood why people persist in using these sites such as booking.com and trainline.

I remember the first time I booked a holiday (to Vienna in 2008) totally online direct with the hotel, flight direct with BA and a concert ticket direct with the Musikverein, all confirmed and paid for without having to leave my chair. It felt like a bit of an achievement in those days!

[kernelbogey]

Why not cut out the middleman and book direct with the hotel? I've never really understood why people persist in using these sites such as booking.com ...

Because they offer a variety of hotels on one site; that's convenient.

[Dave2002]

When my new card was blocked for an online purchase a number of years ago after a few small contactless uses, Lloyds Bank advised me to use a new card three or four times at a cashpoint machine before using it online. Annoying as it is when your card gets blocked we have to remember that these measures do protect us against fraud which would be a whole lot more of an unpleasant experience.

That's OK - but the convenience of not having to put in a pin each time is somewhat outweighed by the observation that this may lead many of us to forget the pins. I have on occasions forgotten which card I was using and put in a pin for a different card.

It does make sense to have periodic checks, so the advice to use cards at a cashpoint machine is perfectly valid - and indeed that is what I tried to do. There has been a substantial failure in service in my case - which has led to me using one of my other cards more - at least until I get this sorted. I thought it would take only a few days, but it's taken well over a month so far, and several trips - more than 15 miles each time - to get apparently nowhere.

[Dave2002]

So ... the saga continues. Prompted by a suggestion here I thought I'd check the card in another bank ATM - but it simply responded "Invalid pin" or words to that effect.

In the end I was "forced" to go back to the originating bank, where yet another very helpful lady went through checks. No - it does seem to be stuffed, so she has ordered yet another new pin to be sent to me, and suggested that I don't even try to use it, but go straight back to her when she's available, and she will help me then.

As a side issue I also asked whether the current interest bearing accounts still work as they did a few years ago, with a modicum of tax sent direct to HMRC, but apparently that's not how they work now. Interest bearing accounts are now paid out in full, with no basic rate tax withholding - which I don't think was the case earlier, and in any case the interest rates previously were so low as to be inconsequential.
For many people this might be good news, as many people probably won't get enough interest to trigger attention from HMRC. Now, with better interest rates, some people may want to invest in ISAs - if that works for them, or find other strategies if they have any large amounts of cash stashed away.

[Pulcinella]

So ... the saga continues. Prompted by a suggestion here I thought I'd check the card in another bank ATM - but it simply responded "Invalid pin" or words to that effect.

In the end I was "forced" to go back to the originating bank, where yet another very helpful lady went through checks. No - it does seem to be stuffed, so she has ordered yet another new pin to be sent to me, and suggested that I don't even try to use it, but go straight back to her when she's available, and she will help me then.

As a side issue I also asked whether the current interest bearing accounts still work as they did a few years ago, with a modicum of tax sent direct to HMRC, but apparently that's not how they work now. Interest bearing accounts are now paid out in full, with no basic rate tax withholding - which I don't think was the case earlier, and in any case the interest rates previously were so low as to be inconsequential.
For many people this might be good news, as many people probably won't get enough interest to trigger attention from HMRC. Now, with better interest rates, some people may want to invest in ISAs - if that works for them, or find other strategies if they have any large amounts of cash stashed away.

Dave: Where have you been? Doesn't news travel up north of Inverness? Tax stopped being deducted from savings accounts quite a while ago. The onus is now on individuals to gather the P60 tax information from each savings account and report if the total in a tax year exceeds £1000. As you say, though, this has been unlikely in most previous years, and probably for many for tax year 2022–2023, for which those certificates are just being issued, but the threshold may well be reached for many for the current tax year, with increased savings interest rates. I don't know if the banks also report direct to HMRC and if you'd be chased if you didn't submit a self-assessment form or otherwise declare it. Given how snowed under HMRC is I might doubt it, but it's exactly the sort of thing they'd suddenly devote some resources to when they should be chasing much more serious offenders. The Chancellor might just realise how much additional work this extra processing will cause and decide to raise the threshold, but somehow I doubt it!

[Joseph K]

Well, I'm in Hammersmith London, waiting to see Shakti not feeling great. The arseholes at St Christopher's hostel who I already paid, won't have me because my form of ID, an out of date driving licence. Utter swine, this is the first time this has happened.

[Pulcinella]

Well, I'm in Hammersmith London, waiting to see Shakti not feeling great. The arseholes at St Christopher's hostel who I already paid, won't have me because my form of ID, an out of date driving licence. Utter swine, this is the first time this has happened.

Do you not have something on your phone: Railcard perhaps?

[Petrushka]

Well, I'm in Hammersmith London, waiting to see Shakti not feeling great. The arseholes at St Christopher's hostel who I already paid, won't have me because my form of ID, an out of date driving licence. Utter swine, this is the first time this has happened.

I had similar when I went into the Three shop to ask about a minor problem I was having with my mobile phone. The shop was 15 miles away so meant a special journey. The first question they asked was for photo ID which of course I didn't have. I argued the toss but they point blank refused to go any further. Even a photo of me on my own phone wasn't acceptable.

I know some people don't like them but the sooner the UK has a National Identity Card the better.

[Pulcinella]

It's worth having a photo of a photo ID (passport, railcard, bus pass) on your phone to have as 'evidence', though I guess they might still argue that they need to see the real thing.
I too wish we had a National ID Card: for a start it would validate entitlement to such aspects as social benefits and NHS services which many say are regularly abused.