You can now pay for goods costing up to £15 if you have a debit or credit card with contactless technology, an increase of £5 from the previous £10 limit.

Contactless cards, which allow you to make small transactions very quickly by holding your card against a special reader without entering your PIN, were first issued to consumers in 2007 by Barclaycard.

Now, more than two years on, the limit has been increased by the industry for the very first time as a result of demand from consumers and retailers.

The advantage of contactless debit and credit card technology is how easy it makes paying for everyday items, such as your morning coffee or lunch. You just hold your card over the special contactless reader, indicated by a sign, and the money is taken from your current account or credit card account just like it would be if you were using your card in the traditional way.

The technology is safeguarded by the low transaction limit and the system which periodically prompts you to enter your PIN to verify you are the real cardholder.

Since the launch of the new technology, Barclays has issued 2 million contactless VISA debit cards and Barclaycard, the credit card arm of Barclays, has issued 4 million contactless credit cards.

Plus, there are now 20,000 payment terminals in the UK that are able to take contactless payments including many outlets of Pret A Manger, Krispy Kreme, Coffee Republic and thousands of independent retailers with more adopting the technology each week.

To help its customers, Barclays has made a video explaining all you need to know about contactless technology which you can find by clicking on the following link – www.barclays.co.uk/video.

To find your nearest outlet accepting contactless debit or credit cards visit the VISA website at www.visapaywave.co.uk.