Help stamp out card fraud

You may have read or heard about Chip and Pin - the new system being introduced to combat the problem of credit and debit card fraud in the UK. If you accept payment by credit or debit card, you will need to ensure that you and your staff understand how the system works.

Most plastic cards incorporate a Chip, which ensures that the card is genuine. Transactions are verified by the customer keying in a 4-digit Personal Identification Number (PIN) rather than by signing a paper receipt, which ensures that the person presenting the card is the true owner.

If you have Bank-owned card-processing equipment, such as a PDQ terminal, your Bank should have been in touch to discuss any necessary upgrades. However, if you own your card processing equipment, then you should contact the equipment supplier as, from January 2005, if a customer's card is PIN protected but the equipment does not take PIN, the retailer is liable for the fraud.

You can get further information about Chip and Pin at Barclaycard Merchant Services, the Central Project Management Office, APACCS or the British Retail Consortium.

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