Make NTUC rewards card contactless

Of late, I have noticed that cashiers at some NTUC FairPrice branches are no longer helping customers swipe their Plus! rewards cards to earn points to offset future purchases. Instead, customers have to swipe the cards themselves.

When asked, the cashiers explained that this was to minimise contact as part of Covid-19 safety precautions.

While this is a good practice to prevent the spread of the coronavirus, it creates confusion for the elderly and those who are not familiar with the system.

I have observed that many shoppers do not know which direction the magnetic stripe on the card should face when swiping while others struggle with the terminal, inadvertently holding up the queue.  

These magnetic stripe cards issued by NTUC Link have been around for years. 

I wonder why NTUC Link or FairPrice have not replaced them with a tap-and-go contactless system similar to the paywave technology which all FairPrice outlets already use for credit card payments.

Indeed, other supermarket chains such as Cold Storage and Giant are already using such technology for their rewards system. 

Customers need only to tap their PAssion cards on a contactless reader that allows points to be accumulated to offset future purchases.

Isn’t it time for NTUC to replace the old magnetic Plus! card with a contactless one for better efficiency and hygiene?  

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