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Electonic Use Only Contactless card on the tube

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bicbasher

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Can I use an Electronic Use Only pre-paid contactless debit card using the Oyster readers at rail stations? Those readers I suspect are online than the bus Oyster readers.
 
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radamfi

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My first contactless card was an Orange prepaid card, which was electronic use only. That didn't work on London buses (there was no rail acceptance then).
 
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redbutton

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My understanding is that no Oyster/CPC readers are online, because the authorisation process takes too long. They just record the card details for settlement overnight, same as an Oyster auto-topup.
 
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MikeWh

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redbutton said:
My understanding is that no Oyster/CPC readers are online, because the authorisation process takes too long. They just record the card details for settlement overnight, same as an Oyster auto-topup.
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Yes and no.

No readers are online in the true sense of the word, but details are sent back to the system within 5-10 minutes and authorisation is obtained if needed at that point. If authorisation fails the system will update all the readers with the new blacklist (I think this happens every 30 minutes or so) and any attempt to start a new journey will fail. Finishing a journey will still be permitted so you aren't trapped in the system.
 
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