UK FCA expands contactless payment limits and cracks down on misleading car‑finance ads

The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has altered rules for contactless card payments, allowing banks and payment providers to set their own transaction limits. The change could raise the ceiling to £100 per tap, though major banks say they will keep current limits for now. The regulator said the move is to give firms flexibility while maintaining strong fraud controls.

Separately, the FCA warned that some claims‑management and law firms are using misleading advertisements to promote a car‑finance compensation scheme that could see around 12 million motorists receive an average payout of £829. The watchdog highlighted that such adverts often conceal commercial affiliations and may cost claimants up to 30 % of any award in fees. An FCA spokesperson stressed that "Accessing compensation is free, and people don't need to use a claims management or law firm to get what they're owed."