23 June 2016, Brussels, Belgium - On Wednesday 22 June 2016 MEP Ádám Kósa hosted the official launch event of Pay-Able in the European Parliament in Brussels. Pay-Able is a platform that strives for barrier free access to payment terminals for all. The initiative, a cross-sectoral, single-issue European platform is supported by all European consumer associations. Pay-Able is under the high patronage of Mr Herman Van Rompuy, President European Council emeritus, Professor.

Pay-Able calls on the European Parliament and the Council of the European Union to include payment terminals in the scope of the proposal for a European Accessibility Act (EAA) which was proposed by the European Commission in December 2015. The platform encourages  industry to develop a next generation of payment terminals with the needs of disabled and elderly people in mind. Speaking at the launch of the event, Mr Ádám Kósa, highlighted the need for an inclusive society while drawing on his own experiences. “It is not my deafness that causes problems for me, it is society who treats it as a problem” he told the audience. As a member of the Committee on Employment and Social Affairs (EMPL) he has just been appointed rapporteur to the EAA and aims to include payment terminals in the scope.

Currently many of the 80 million people with disabilities and close to 100 million elderly people in Europe regularly experience problems when trying to pay by card. User-friendly terminals will ensure that disabled and elderly consumers have barrier free access to this common payment tool. Mr Mokrane Boussaïd, Director of the European Blind Union, also stressed the importance of including payment terminals noting that “from a blind or partially sighted person’s perspective, there are significant security concerns when making a payment transaction via a terminal”.

Mme Inmaculada Placencia Porrero from the European Commission highlighted the importance of standardised technical specifications and called upon stakeholders to provide input.  Mr Jan van der Velden from the Dutch Presidency of the Council of the EU applauded Pay-Able for bringing NGOs and the industry together to find cost efficient ways of achieving accessible payment terminals.

The proposal for the EAA is now awaiting a committee decision in the European Parliament. It is expected that the Council will shortly begin to draft its position on the proposal. Pay-Able therefore warmly welcomes the Slovakian’s Presidency pledge that Slovakia “will have accessibility as a priority and will continue the efforts of the Dutch Presidency in the past half year”.  

Following the keynote speeches the Pay-Able website was officially launched by Mr Joep Aarts, Director of Oogvereniging (Eye Association Netherlands).

For pictures of the launch event and for more information you can visit Pay-Able´s website: www.pay-able.eu.

For further information contact:

Welmoed Neijmeijer

+32 (0)2 300 8631

+32 (0)4 8513 0279

info@pay-able.eu