The main topic at November’s PAA networking function in Sydney concerned the imminent implementation of EMV credit card technology. A diverse ensemble of parking professionals attended Glenn Caldwell’s presentation regarding the introduction of EMV payment technology into on-street and off-street parking systems.

This highly contentious subject is still a work in progress and we look forward to a continuing dialogue with the parking profession as to where EMV is likely to lead us. To get the discussion started we have summarized below some of the questions which arose on the evening – most of which remain unanswered.

EMV will have an impact on car park owners, operators, suppliers, financial institutions and customers. How it is dealt with presents a number of challenges.

Glenn's presentation addressed the implications, obligations and responsibilities for parking suppliers, banks and card issuers, local government and gateway providers of EMV technology.

Here is a copy of Glenn's presentation:

EMV Credit Card Parking Technology for 2012

What do you think the Banks and the card issuers are going to do over the next 18 months in regards to enforcing EMV compliance?

What measures do you think the Banks and Card Issuers will take to encourage change?

Do you think that the bottom line will be a matter of “offsetting risk” which basically means that there will be higher merchant fees for non-EMV transactions (which can be passed onto the consumer in the form of a credit card surcharge)?

If this is the case, then how long will this delay the introduction of EMV in the parking industry?

Will contactless payments become prevalent within the next 12 months despite certain Card issuers still relying on magnetic cards?

Do you really need a pin pad system in an off-street car park?

We would really like to hear your opinion and generate discussion. Please leave a comment below. We will provide regular updates on this subject as they become available.

Anonymous commented on 13-Dec-2011 03:33 PM I think Contactless credit card in this space will become mandatory. The banks will be making it a big issue within 12 months.

Darren commented on 14-Dec-2011 09:39 AM What are the pitfalls of non-compliance?

Pat commented on 14-Dec-2011 12:17 PM wE SHOIULD LOOK AT USING PAYPASS OR PASSWAY FOR THE FUTURE WHICH IS EMV COMPLAINT. HOW COME THE PROVIDERS ARE NOT USING THIS AS YET? I WOULD ASSUME THAT THE BANKS HAVE NOT GOT THEIR ACT TOGATHER AS YET DUE TO THE NUMBER OF MAGNETIC CARDS IN THE SYSTEM. PERHAPS MORE PRESSURE SHOULD BE PUT ON VISA AND MASTER TO DELAY THE INTRODUCTION OF EMV REQUIREMENTS EG TO 2015.

Glenn commented on 14-Dec-2011 01:08 PM Pat - I agree that Contactless is the true way forward - but a great deal of players have been dragging their feet to a degree. One card issuer has not even begun to issue chip enabled cards - which can only slow down the implementation of contactless (e.g. paywave) as card readers will need to be CONTACT just to handle these magnetic only cards.

John commented on 14-Dec-2011 01:16 PM The credit card issuers are the main drivers of this technology, as a way to reduce fraud (which costs them a huge amount of money each year). Therefore, there needs to be a clear dialogue and strategy between the card issuers and the parking industry, perhaps via the Parking Association.

Anonymous commented on 15-Dec-2011 10:37 AM One of the really important points Glenn made in his presentation was to work with your bank to only accept EMV solutions from suppliers that can show a certificate to prove they are approved with YOUR bank, not another bank, but YOUR bank. Each installation must be individually EMV approved with the merchant’s bank. No approval from YOUR bank means it’s not a proper approved EMV solution for your organisation and you WILL incur a penalty for non-compliance.

Glenn commented on 15-Dec-2011 11:03 AM Yes this is one of the main points I tried to make. It was however interesting to note that the "penalties" were a little unclear. penalties for non-compliance can only be verified or at least discussed with your bank.

Manny Rasores de Toro commented on 20-Dec-2011 12:01 PM Based on the European experiences, the banks and gateways have done almost nothing to encourage migration of existing terminals to EMV. The norm across Europe has been to leave magnetic cards in use until the complete revenue control system is replaced and then have EMV chip & pin fitted on and off street.. The problem has been that chip & pin does not work well entry to exit and this means that many LA's and Operators prefer to leave the existing system in place year after year until a nonchip EMV solution is agreed for the parking industry. Regarding Contactless payments, we have been pushing this in the UK for the last 18 months and even with new equipment, many equipment manufacturers are not offering it and LA's and operators are not asking for it. I guest that when contactless start to be used much more in fast food and public transport, it will begun to take off in parking.

Glenn commented on 23-Dec-2011 11:35 AM Manny, that is a poignant statement. Touching on the contactless aspect again - The recent release of "Kaching" by the Commonwealth Bank in Australia PLUS the release of Coles contactless payments in their supermarkets means that contactless is well on its way to making huge strides. I agree that it is the best way to go. In my talk I said it would take some time however, because it appeared that Councils were going to be forced into the "Contact" EMV solution first. The main drivers that I saw for this was: 1 - majority of suppliers had already invested time and resources into a contact (not PIN) solution; 2 - not all card issuers had released chip cards. If the poor Council Officer has to raise a million dollars in 2012 to upgrade machines (and it takes a long time to get EMV certs on a device) - it is likely to be contact. And when asked to spend another 500k for contactless - by the time they write the business case, request money in budget, tender, approve, implement...... it will be 2014. In a way its a shame it has been moving in a dishevelled kind of way. One of the guys from my office said today that we do not want to be perceived as backwards (by not being close to a contactless solution). Anyway ....the drivers to change to EMV in 2012 will largely be determined by penalties (if any) by the banks - and the subsequent business case can then be written determining the best way forward. So once again - "just work with your bank to navigate through the journey"