The chip and pin machine: An integrated guide to applying

One of the key elements of a retail EPOS solution is an integrated chip and pin machine system. What is the point having all these computers, if they are not linked to your chip and pin machines? If you need to re-type the amount into your chip and pin machine, then you do not have an integrated solution. What are the basic elements that make up an integrated chip and pin solution.

There are numerous delays and pitfalls in applying for integrated chip and pin solutions that you need to be aware of.

Now you have got your shiny new computerised EPOS retail software solution, the next thing you need is integrated chip and pin. As a starting point you need the EPOS software system itself. This is provided by an EPOS solution provider who install software written by and EPOS software house. This might be the same company. This software is written to work with one or more chip and pin solutions.

These chip and pin machine solutions are provided by a third party. Companies exist solely to produce chip and pin machine systems. Your EPOS solution provider will offer one of these companies and arrange an contract between your retail business and the chip and pin solution provider.

Before you can complete a this contract, you'll need a merchant account from your acquiring bank. The acquiring bank might not be your actual bank, but if you do not have any merchant accounts, then your main bank is a good starting point. They will happily perform the role of your acquiring bank, or point you in the right direction.

The acquiring bank will setup one or merchant accounts. This depends on your business needs, but most acquirers will give you separate merchant accounts for chip and pin, and web transactions, for example. They don't like you using the same merchant account for different things!

There is often a delay whilst this merchant account is setup. Once this is done, you tell the chip and pin solution provider (usually via your EPOS solution provider) and they use this information to setup your contract. Once you've got the account with the chip and pin company, they will send you your terminals and the account is ready to use.

Now the EPOS solution provider comes into play - they will setup the terminals and configure your EPOS software and hardware to work with chip and pin - finally the transaction start to flow!

The point here is that all this takes time. It might take a couple of weeks to setup the merchant accounts, and then another couple of weeks to setup the account with the chip and pin solution provider. You can't get an integrated chip and pin solution overnight!

If there are delays, you, the retailer, are pretty powerless - all you can do is shout at your EPOS solution provider, and they can shout at the chip and pin provider. More than likely the chip and pin company will tell you that the delay is with the bank, so, you the retailer must go and shout at the bank... and round and around it goes.

Make sure that all the required applications for chip and pin are kicked off as early in the EPOS project as possible to ensure that your chip and pin solution is ready for your EPOS system go-live!