Judge slams ‘ludicrous’ contactless cards

CONTACTLESS cards make life easier for criminals a judge claimed as he criticised the “ludicrous” decision by banks to introduce them.

Recorder David Bartlett said the popularity of the cards now meant thieves could easily “wave them around” and spend money.

During a hearing at Exeter Crown Court, he said: “You can make these contactless payments now. It seems quite ludicrous that banks allow this to happen. It seems anyone who steals a card can wave it around until it is reported as stolen.”

He made the comments after hearing how a stolen card was used in a shop soon after it was taken from the victim’s bedroom. Robert Vipond used the card after it was taken from a man’s bedside in the early hours.

Vipond then made contactless purchases, as well as taking out cash from ATM machines using a PIN which had been left on a notebook on the same bedside table as the wallet.

He used the card to buy £23 worth of tobacco and groceries, part of a spree in which he also used two stolen cards to withdraw £250 cash and buy a £1,500 watch and £279.45 worth of clothes.

The court heard he is a heroin addict with 32 previous convictions for theft alone. Vipond, 34, of Kennford, Devon, admitted handling stolen bank cards, theft, and four counts of fraud and was jailed for 18 months.