When you use your debit card and a merchant tells us about the transaction we reduce your balance including pending transactions immediately. For smaller transactions, including most contactless transactions, the merchant doesn't always let us know in advance you have made the transaction. This means we cannot deduct it from your balance including pending transactions until we receive it a few days later.
It's a good idea to keep track of your contactless payments and make sure you have enough money in your account to cover them, in order to avoid going overdrawn.
Find out more information about your contactless debit card (opens in a new window).