During a breakdown at Nets, such as the one experienced on Saturday evening, those who are “relatively well off” in Danish retail can still process payments via physical Dankort. This is contingent upon the store having power and accepting Dankort.

Henrik Lundgaard Sedenmark, Head of Payments at the Danish Chamber of Commerce, emphasized that the terminal must be in offline mode and that both store employees and customers must be aware of this functionality. When a Dankort terminal operates in offline mode, it can process payments from most payment cards and always from Dankort if the store accepts it. The switch to offline mode may be automatic or require manual activation by employees, depending on the store.

While Dankort transactions are generally reliable in offline mode, payments with Visa and Mastercard are not always possible. Additionally, digital wallets like Apple Pay and Google Pay typically do not function during these outages. However, major supermarket chains are actively developing solutions to enable the use of wallets even during breakdowns.

The five major grocery chains are reportedly working on implementing solutions that will allow customers to use services such as Apple Pay during future disruptions, though specific timelines remain unclear. Progress varies among the chains, but the Danish Chamber of Commerce indicates that all are working toward this capability. This option is not limited to grocery stores; retailers can arrange with their acquirer to enable offline mode for cards other than Dankort.

The recent breakdown at Nets lasted approximately three hours on Saturday evening. The cause of the disruption remains unknown. While the system is now operating normally, customers may still encounter occasional fluctuations.