Tap-to-pay is designed to be quick. A customer taps their card or phone, the terminal confirms the payment, and the transaction moves on.
When it doesn’t work, the impact shows up immediately at the counter. Staff need to retry the transaction, switch payment methods, or move customers through more slowly. Inbusy retail and hospitality environments, those small interruptions add up quickly.
While tap-to-pay failures are often blamed on cards or terminals, one common cause is less obvious: the network connection inside the building (Wi-Fi, Ethernet, or mobile data) isn’t strong or stable enough to reliably authorise payments, especially where terminals rely on wireless connectivity.
The customer’s device can also influence it. Some mobile wallets can still complete limited tap-to-pay transactions without an active internet connection, but banking apps and wallet tokens often need a secure connection from time to time for authentication or token refresh. If that connection isn’t available at checkout, tap-to-pay may fail even when the terminal is working normally.
This article explains how tap-to-pay works, why it can fail in certain locations, and what retailers can do to improve payment reliability.
Tap to pay is a contactless payment method. Customers tap (or hold) a contactless card or mobile device near a payment terminal, and the terminal reads the payment details using NFC (near-field communication).
NFC is the short-range “tap” component. It’s fast and secure.
But the transaction still relies on something else: a reliable data connection in most cases. The terminal typically needs to send an authorisation request to the payment network and receive a response. If that connection is slow, unstable, or drops out, the payment can fail even when the NFC read works correctly.
A tap-to-pay transaction takes seconds, but several steps happen in that time:
If the terminal can’t communicate reliably during the authorisation step, transactions may time out, stall, or fail.
This is one of the most common causes of repeat payment issues in real venues.
Large buildings, concrete and steel structures, basements, complex layouts, and high-density environments can create mobile black spots. If payment terminals rely on mobile data as a primary connection or fallback,weak coverage can directly affect transaction performance.
It’s also worth noting that the customer’s device can be affected by the same indoor coverage issues. While some mobile wallets can complete limited transactions offline, banking apps and payment tokens often need a secure connection for authentication or periodic refresh. If that connection isn’t available inside the venue, tap-to-pay can fail even when the terminal itself is functioning correctly.
Common signs the issue is coverage-related include:
Recommended reading: See how a large, high-traffic venue addressed in-building mobile black spots to improve operational reliability in thisBankstown RSL case study.
Older terminals may not handle modern payment methods consistently or may have outdated firmware, which can cause contactless transactions to fail. In these cases, problems are usually widespread, not tied to one area of the store.
Some failures come down to simple causes, such as:
These are common, but they don’t usually explain repeat failures in specific parts of a venue.
When staff aren’t sure what to try, small issues take longer to resolve. That increases queue time and makes the checkout experience feel less reliable.
Tap-to-pay issues aren’t just a technical inconvenience. At checkout, time and confidence matter.
Frequent payment failures can lead to:
The customer may not know why the payment failed, but they will remember that paying was harder than it should have been.
It’s common for retailers to respond by switching terminals or payment providers. Sometimes that helps, especially if hardware is outdated.
But if the underlying issue ispoor in-building connectivity, the experience often stays the same. The terminal still typically needs a reliable connection to send and receive authorisations. Without stable coverage, tap-to-pay performance can remain inconsistent regardless of the device.
If your venue has known mobile black spots, improving coverage can reduce failed or delayed transactions.
This is particularly relevant for:
Reliable connectivity supports more than payments. It also underpins the systems and workflows that keep modern venues running, including POS connectivity, staff devices, customer-facing digital services, and operational tools that rely on real-time access.
Even with strong infrastructure, staff should know the basics:
This reduces delays and keeps checkout moving while issues are investigated.
Tap to pay depends on more than NFC. In most cases, the terminal still needs to communicate with payment networks in real time.
When tap to pay fails repeatedly in the same parts of a store or venue, the issue is often not the card, the mobile device or the terminal. It’s the building and the connectivity inside it, particularly where payments rely on wireless connections.
This is where our team at MobileCorp can help.
MobileCorp designs and delivers in-building mobile coverage solutions that remove black spots and support reliable connectivity across retail, hospitality, and large venues. By strengthening coverage where transactions happen, businesses can reduce payment disruptions, improve checkout flow, and support day-to-day operations.
If payment reliability is becoming a recurring issue in your venue, addressing in-building connectivity is often the most effective place to start.
Improve In-Building Mobile Coverage
Why do contactless payments work in one part of a venue but fail in another?
Contactless payments use NFC technology for the tap, but the terminal still usually needs a stable connection to complete authorisation. If parts of a building have weak coverage, your POS system or card readers can struggle to complete in-person payments consistently, even if the NFC chip is read correctly.
Do digital wallets like Apple Pay, Google Pay, or Samsung Pay need internet to work?
Digital wallets (including Apple Pay, Google Pay, Google Wallet, and Samsung Pay) can still “tap” using NFC. In some cases, a phone can complete limited transactions without an active connection, but tokens may need to be refreshed periodically. Setting up the wallet, adding cards, or completing certain transactions can also require a secure connection.
The transaction often depends on the point-of-sale system being able to reach the payment network for approval. If the POS machine is relying on mobile data in a low-signal area, you can see delays or failures regardless of whether the customer is using a card or an Android device.
Is it the card reader, the POS system, or the network causing the problem?
If tap failures happen randomly across all registers, the card reader or POS system setup may be the issue. If failures are repeatable in specific locations, it’s often a connectivity problem inside the building. The quickest way to narrow it down is to compare performance across different registers and see whether problems follow the location.
Does EFTPOS or the EFTPOS network affect tap-to-pay reliability?
The EFTPOS network is part of the routing and processing of card payments, but most “tap failed” experiences in-store are caused earlier in the chain, when the POS machine can’t reliably send or receive authorisation messages. That’s why fixing connectivity can reduce failures even when your payment provider hasn’t changed.
What should staff do when tap to pay fails at the counter?
Start with quick checks: retry once, confirm the customer’s device is positioned correctly, and try a different card reader or register. If it succeeds consistently at another point-of-sale system location, that’s a strong sign the issue is local coverage rather than the customer’s bank account or payment method. If failures keep happening, it’s worth logging where they occur and escalating with customer support or your connectivity provider.
Can improving in-building coverage help you accept payments more reliably?
Yes, especially if your payment setup relies on wireless connectivity. When you accept payments through a POS system that depends on mobile data or Wi-Fi, black spots can create slow approvals, timeouts, and failed transactions. Improving coverage where in-person payments happen helps stabilise payment performance and reduces checkout interruptions.