to not just buy one thing on a card, i.e, something for one pound,, but have to buy a couple

[slartybartfast]

I am embarrassed to put such a minuscule amount on a card. go to supermarket for just one packet of value bacon was the thing in question.
DH says everyone does it and I shouldnt feel ashamed.

Why on earth would you feel embarrassed? Don't be daft :o

I mean that kindly! Honestly it's no big deal and everyone does it. Loads of people don't even use cash these days.

go to the self service checkouts, that's what I do if I want to use my card for a small amount. or just apologise and say you forgot to go to the cashpoint. Or if you have enough cash in the bank draw £10 and pay cash.

Haha I'm like that sometimes.

Then I realise it is the trick of the supermarket - it is big and shiny, you must spend money.

If you went to your local corner shop, would you feel the same way? Unlikely!

i would go to self service to ease my embarrassment.

Haha I'm like that sometimes.

Then I realise it is the trick of the supermarket - it is big and shiny, you must spend money.

If you went to your local corner shop, would you feel the same way? Unlikely!

agree iggly, It is a trick!

I wouldn't buy extra I didn't need! Who cares?

DP is weird about paying for things with change - I think he feels it's as though he is grubbing around for the money. As a consequence he has a pile of loose change in a container. Periodically I stick it in a Coinstar machine and convert it into notes as it pisses me off that all this loose change is hanging around. Yes I know they charge for this.

i always need extra

YANBU

It is exactly why I started getting cash out of the bank every week to use as a kitty

I always feel like I have to bump up my shopping a bit to make it up to a decent-ish amount when paying with a card.

If I only needed milk, I'd end up buying extras that I didn't really need just to push it up to a fiver or something.

good idea stinkle,
i might try that.

Oh, I didn't mean to put YANBU at the beginning. Obviously we are

I do this, not so much out of embarrassment but because some shops have a minimum spend if you're using a card.

Ive heard other people say they'd be embarrassed too, I didn't think there's anything wrong with it personally - is it that you think they might assume you don't have access to enough money?
I rarely carry cash as I just fritter it away (take out a tenner to buy a £3 sandwich and the rest just goes). I frequently pay for a coffee, drink, small lunch, magazine etc with my card and never think anything of it. Obviously some places have a £5 min and I'd use cash then.

I used to use coinstar machines, but what I do now is take my change with me when I know I'll be using a self service checkout and it's quiet, and use a load of it then. That and occasional bus fares.

I have no problem doing this in a supermarket. I recently bought some reduced milkshakes for 20p each that were still on offer so you saved 38p if you bought two. I spent 6p on my card.
In my corner shop there is a minimum spend of £5 for using a card, there I end up buying all kinds of over-priced random crap just because I have run out of milk.

I use coinstar too for copper as I can't be bothered to count and bag them up and then haul them to the bank. The coinstar fee is less than parking would cost

Why would you be embarrassed? I genuinely don't understand what would make that transaction embarrassing?

The minimum spend is related to the charges the shop had to pay to be able to accept card payments. Does anyone know roughly how much they are? I know they vary from card to card which is why so few places take AmEx as their charges are a lot higher. This is why I always us cash in small businesses so they aren't losing out by taking a card payment-particularly for something of low value. But in the big chains it doesn't bother me as much!

To those who use coin star, do you know a lot of banks have coin machines just like those now which counts the coins and puts them straight into your accounts? Saves you the 9p a £ that coin star charges. There a some in my local barclays and Halifax has just got one too :-) HTH

Frekletoes I have a small business and depending on the provider it costs between 30-40p per transaction plus VAT if below a certain amount or a percentage of the transaction with a minimum of 30p. I really would prefer it if people used cash as the majority of our card purchases are for small amounts and the charges soon add up! I don't have a minimum spend thouigh or a charge because people don't like it but I'm not used people realise the cost of using a machine. Obviously the big supermarkets will have a much better deal with banka and pay. very low transaction fee!

Why would that be embarrassing? Whether you pay on a card or with cash it is still clear you have the funds to pay for it somehow - you're not stealing it !

I really don't get it, and am that people would buy necessary things and waste money to avoid this unnecessary embarrassment.

I was once buying paracetamol with coins in Tesco and I was 4p short. The lady behind the counter made me get my bank card to pay the 4p or she wouldn't have let me have them. They can't be that worried about card charges!

not retail, but at work we get charged 3.3% of the transaction by the card processor, but no annual fee. Previous card processor, charged an annual fee, equipment charge and a % of the transaction!

I dont use cash just cards so ill buy what i need nothing more.

Use self service if it bothers you.

I think supermarkets etc would rather you used a card than cash, as managing cash is expensive. I think it's different for small businesses - which is why they often have minimum spends for cards. I'd apologise in a small business but no way in a supermarket - we're all encouraged to used contactless now anyway, just tap and go!

I'm another one who doesn't understand why this would be embarrassing. Could you try and explain?

I've worked in a shop, I've served someone who was buying beer and nappies and when she didn't have enough money for both bought the beer and left the nappies. You see all sorts of things, how people pay for their shopping barely registers.