Nationwide debuts brilliant ‘dot and notch’ recycled cards to help customers with sight loss

We’ve seen some pretty novel bank card innovations over the years, including recently Starling Bank’s recycled card and Revolut’s glow-in-the-dark card.

But sometimes the biggest innovation is also incredibly simple, as demonstrated by Nationwide’s new ‘dot and notch’ card.

Certified by the Royal National Institute of Blind People (RNIB), Nationwide’s card includes a series of dots that distinguish between debit and credit cards.

Then, on the card's side is a notch that indicates which way around the card needs to be inserted into card machines and ATMs.

Plus, the new cards are now made from 85 per cent recycled plastic—10 per cent more than Starling Bank’s recycled card—with the remainder from unavoidable non-recyclable elements.

All in all a huge win for every Nationwide customer, whether dealing with sight loss or not.

"Simple changes to bank cards can make the world of difference to those with sight loss and we congratulate Nationwide on taking these steps to make banking a more inclusive and accessible experience for their blind and partially sighted customers," said David Clarke, director of services at the RNIB.

Nationwide isn’t the only UK bank to adopt the RNIB’s ‘dot and notch’ system to help those customers with sight loss, NatWest began offering the cards as opt-in in 2017 and First Direct added the system in 2020 for all customers.

Making bank cards as accessible as possible and recycled by default is a brilliant step by Nationwide. Let's hope more banks and fintechs join the initiative.