LONDON—A company has come up with an app to keep consumers from overspending with their plastic when they are drinking alcohol.
The new device locks out a card when the cardholder reaches a preset drink limit.
DrnkPay, developed by financial services consultancy iBe TSE, is an app that connects payments cards to either a breathalyzer or biosensor. Before a night out, users set up the app by selecting how many drinks they plan to have, which DrnkPay converts to units of alcohol. Then, before every purchase, users have to blow into the breathalyzer, finding out how close they are to their limit, reported The Telegraph.
If cardholders don’t want to carry the small breathalyzer around they can use a Quantac Tally biosensor wristband, which measures alcohol diffusion through the skin, The Telegraph reported.
“Once you’ve hit your self-imposed limit, the app will lock your card and prevent you making further payments,” Francesco Scarnera, CEO of iBe TSE, told The Telegraph. "It’s up to you whether to block all payments, or just certain ‘weak points,’ such as takeaways, clubs, or that flight that seems like such a great idea at a.m.”
The company said it is in talks with several banks in the hopes that the app could be offered to customers for free, The Telegraph noted.