Contactless Payments

Contactless is a simple and secure way to pay for bus travel without needing cash. Contactless payments can be made for any tickets up to the transaction value of £30, simply tap and go!

Payment cards displaying the contactless logo from Visa or Mastercard logo can be used. We also accept Apple Pay and Google Pay. We are currently unable to accept payments by American Express.

From time to time, we authorise an amount of 10p. This allows us to check with your card issuer that the card is valid. This will be replaced by the full transaction amount in 24-48 hours.

Most contactless cards issued outside of the UK will be accepted on our ticket machines. However, if a card doesn't work, please contact your card issuer. Cards issued outside of the UK may incur a further overseas transaction fee, applied by your card issuer.

Contactless cards will display the contactless symbol. Most new cards are issued with this feature. If your card is not currently contactless, speak to your bank to ask if your card can be updated.

You can use contactless to purchase any paper tickets to the value of £30. This can include more than one ticket in a single transaction, e.g. an adult and a child ticket. However, the total price cannot exceed £30.

A national limit for contactless payments has been set by all banks to £30.
 

Drivers are able to refund card transactions at the point of purchase only.  If you request a refund, the driver will issue you with a ticket which will say ‘EMV Credit Note’.  Please then allow up to 5 working days to see refunds on your account.  Drivers are not able to provide a cash refund.

If you should request a refund after purchase, you will then need to contact Customer Service on 0345 602 0121 with the following information:

•  The service on which the ticket was purchased
•  Transaction Total Amount
•  Date and Time
•  First 6 and last 4 digits of your card as shown on the receipt
•  Whether you paid with Apple or Google pay

Our Customer Services team will then consider your request for a refund.

Drivers will not know the reason why a payment did not work. If a payment fails, you may wish to try a different card or pay using an alternative payment method such as cash or purchasing a ticket via our mTickets app.

Hint: Our cheapest tickets are available on mTickets so why not buy before you go!

Some of the reasons why a card may not work include:

1. The card has expired.
2. The card is not a contactless card.
3. The card is not accepted e.g. American Express.
4. The card is being presented for a payment over £30.
5. A previous transaction has been declined by our system and the card is blocked.
6. The card hasn't been approved by the bank for the transaction.
7. The card hasn’t been used at a Chip and PIN terminal before.
8. More than one card has been detected by the reader at the same time.

If a card does not work, please contact your issuing bank for advice. 

Yes, you will get a receipt once your transaction has gone through, along with a ticket for your journey.
 

If you use a card for a payment which is subsequently declined due to not having enough money in your account, your card will be blocked by our ticket machines.  We will try again to recover the money owed automatically after 7 days or if you try to use the card again.  Your card will be blocked until a payment is made successfully for the amount outstanding.

Yes, we accept Apple Pay, Google Pay and Samsung Pay along with bank specific payment forms such as Barclays Mobile payments.

We continue to work hard to improve our payment options for our customers. Thank you for choosing to travel with us!