How to use the chip and pin machine
How to use the chip and pin machine
Whenever you hear people talking about people talking about a machine that has chip technology, they are essentially talking about the chip and pin machine. The cards accepted by this machine come with an embedded microchip. This microchip contains information that is unique to the cardholder. This includes the name, card number and also the expiration date.
The major feature that sets the chip and pin machine from the machines that were used before is that once a card is accepted, there is no need to sign against the payment in order to authenticate it. At the same time, there is no way to tell the pin if you happen to come across a card that does not belong to you. Everything is stored in the card’s microchip.
Here are some tips to help when you use the chip and pin machine:
Inserting the card
When you insert the card into the chip and pin machine, insert it face up. There are two places in which you can insert the card, the terminal or the pin pad.
Keep the card in the terminal or pin pad
The card has to stay inserted until the transaction has been completed and a receipt printed. If you remove it before completion, the payment will end up not being processed.
Locked pin
When a wrong pin is entered too many times, the card becomes temporarily unusable. The chip and pin machine terminal will notify you whether a signature can suffice. If it doesn’t, the customer may have to pay in cash. After that, it will be up to the customer to contact their card company or bank to have the pin unlocked.
Refunds
There are situations where you might have to refund the cardholder. Just insert the card into the chip and pin machine and proceed with the process of refunding. The cardholder will not be required to key his or her pin.
Follow the chip and pin prompts
When processing a card, you should carefully follow the prompts that appear on the terminal screen. It is the terminal which tells you what to do. As soon as you swipe the chip and pin card, the terminal will give you the next instruction.
Foreign cards
Although this is very rare, it is still possible to find some cardholders from different countries that are using the cards that have a magnetic strip. The chip and pin machine will recognise those cards and give you the instructions to follow.
Declined transactions
There is no special way to handle declined transactions. Just start again and follow the normal procedure. At the same time, declined transactions could be a sign of insufficient funds.
Bottom line
The chip and pin machine is the ideal solution that will help you deliver a more secure way for your customers to pay for goods and services. If you follow the proper processes, this machine will prevent card fraud as well as chargebacks that are related to fraud. Chip technology is not easy to copy and this is why the UK government was so unequivocal in its campaign to spread the use of this card countrywide. What is even better is that the chip pin machine still accepts the magnetic strip cards.
