Early reports of a clumsy interface between thumbprint, iPhone and eftpos terminal and an unfortunate case of double-charging by Bank of America has taken the shine off what at first appeared to be a relatively trouble-free introduction of Apple's new mobile payment service.
Bank of America has admitted that about 1000 debit transactions conducted using Apple Pay led to double-charging of consumer accounts. The problem was first spotted by CNBC reporter Samuel Burke and then compounded by a game of phone tag between the bank and Apple as both seemed to blame the other for the erroneous charges.
The use of account tokens instead of actual debit card numbers meant that it was impossible for Apple to investigate the issue after Burke's bank referred him to the provider when he first complained about the issue.
"It was every consumer's worst nightmare: customer service for two companies telling you to call the other," he says. "Thank God for three-way calling. I got Apple and Bank of America on the same line and let them sort it out."
Bank of America has since confirmed that the problems lay at its end and has apologised to customers impacted.
In a statement, Apple maintained an upbeat outlook: “Apple Pay is off to an amazing start and customers are loving the easy, secure and private way to pay. We’re aware of a Bank of America issue impacting a very small number of Apple Pay users. They’re working on a fix that will be available shortly and reversing any duplicate transactions.”