To wonder why so many people don't carry any cash on them?

[InHibernationTilISummer]

Excluding people who are skint and the Queen, obviously.

I've had so many examples of this in the last few weeks:

• Colleague who came into the work in the bad weather. Lots of delays and problems on the bus route they normally get so wanted to get the train instead but had no money for a ticket because they had come in with their season bus pass and lunch and hadn't expected to be spending any money.
• Friend turning up for exercise class but hasn't realised that the price has gone up 50p since she last came - and she only brought the exact money she thought she would need.
• Another friend dropping older child off at sport class finds that there's a fair going on at the sports centre with stalls and activities that her younger child (who was with her) would have enjoyed. Complains that she wishes she had known about it in advance as she would have taken some money out with her.

Is this becoming more common or is it just the people I know? If you aren't skint but don't routinely carry money on you, why is that?

I've been in situations where I haven't expected to be spending any (or much) money and some problem has occurred or plans have changed for some reason (e.g. having to accompany someone to A & E or the last bus not turning up) and I would have been really stuck if I hadn't taken some spare 'emergency' cash.

If contactless works, Apple/Android pay will work. This has been true since they launched

"Apple Pay can be used on any contactless terminal," Huw Davies, MasterCard's Head of Emerging Payments for UK & Ireland, told Digital Spy.

He added: "As far as the consumer or merchant is concerned, this is just like any other contactless card transaction.

"For the merchant, if they have a contactless terminal, Apple Pay works. It's using all of the same infrastructure that's in place, understood, and well used."

The "being able to pay more than £30" might only work in places that specifically support phone payments, but you can pay up to the usual £30 contactless limit using your phone anywhere that has the contactless symbol on the machines.

when there are people on the thread who have no idea about using their phones to pay for stuff via contactless with their cards linked. That's not complicated either

Bloody complicated for me - with my Nokia brick... (sorry, not trying to goad, just trying to make the point that not everyone has, or needs, a bloomin smart phone)

I carry cash but rarely use it.

I'd say I use cash on one day a week on average. Yesterday I bought a jacket from a charity shop. They probably would have taken a card too, but habit made me think they needed cash.

If I'm buying a single pain au chocolat from Sainsbury's on the way to work, it's still easier to tap my phone on the reader than to get my purse out. There's no magical amount of money that makes using a card "worth it".

Just been in Next didn’t look like contactless there

I use cash for tax-averse tradesmen, hairdressers that don't take cards, teachers' collections, termly class fund, bus fares (the app isn't reliable), school fairs and funfairs. That's about it. I find it easier to use a card than faffing around with change. I don't like going out without my purse however, unless it's just on the school run or a short walk.

Next are one of the few retailers that don't offer it.

Their thinking is that most sales are over £30.

There's no magical amount of money that makes using a card "worth it"

that attitude is fine when dealing with large companies.

Smaller shops have to either not take card payments for under a fiver, charge for it (not allowed any more/soon) or take the hit and make no profit/a loss on the sale. I do wish people would think of that - had so many whinging that our local shops are closing - they can't afford to compete.

I thought it was £100 now as said upthread

How do you cashless lot manage when you go to Europe?

I lived in Spain for a decade and managed just fine! I mostly did exactly what I do now - I kept maybe €5/€10 on me for emergencies along with a debit card and I never had any issues. Also over in Spain unless I used the ATMs from my specific bank (La Caixa) I had to pay ATM fees of around €2/3 for every withdrawal ... so if I was drawing out €10-20 then it wasnt worth paying an extra 10/20% on top of the value being drawn out. This meant I rarely took small amounts of money out and if I did it was usually because I was going past a branch of my bank and knew I'd need money for a specific purpose in the near future so I'd draw it out.

Perhaps thats because I lived in cities where even taxis took card payments and the little cafe round the corner from my work would just let all "regulars" who came in every day run up a tab and then pay it once a week so we could always pay by card and not have to faff with odd change every day.

I thought it was £100 now as said upthread

It's £100 by entering your pin on your phones key pad before tapping. £30 just tapping.

Next are stuck in the past.

I don't like being without cash. I take out £100, put £30 in my wallet and the rest on the bedside table. When the £30 is running low, I'll put another £30 in the wallet and so on.

I don't like making card payments for a £1 pack of Cadbury Buttons and so on. My bank statement would end up really cluttered.

Normally things £10 plus are paid on card.

Paying a tradesperson or going to Europe come under "special circumstances".

I assume you don't usually carry enough £ to pay a plumber, or enough Euros to go on holiday.

People who never/rarely use cash are not allergic to cash, they just don't use in their everyday lives.

I always carry cash. I'm on a tight budget and if I use my card I find that I lose track and overspend. If I have cash with me then I can't add unnecessary extras to the trolley etc as I don't have the money. Works for me.

I kept maybe €5/€10 on me for emergencies along with a debit card and I never had any issues.

But in the context of this thread, you're not cashless, as you do keep some cash for emergencies.

The OP was asking about people who don't carry any cash at all. Ever. Or at least just carry the exact amount they expect to spend.
Mind boggling.

And will people stop saying "going to Europe" as if the UK is in a different Continent?

Or as if Europe is one homogeneous mass.

Last time I was in Sweden there were chains of coffee shops that did not accept cash - they only took card payments.

How do you cashless lot manage when you go to Europe

I mainly go to Sweden (business) and they are aiming to have the first cashless city in the world. They are closley followed by India and Australia in pushing tech payments.

Payment rings are a rapidly growing market.

Thing is I still need a purse for my Waitrose card, Sparks card, free coffee vouchers, etc etc so I could never just use a phone so may as well carry cash as well

Cross posted with you @Trills

Sweden really are miles ahead.

How do you cashless lot manage when you go to Europe?

This is funny. I'm already in Europe. The UK.

I pay by card.

Worst case scenario if I've forgotten my purse (has happened once), I'll pay on my phone.

Teen DC have cards so I wire them money if they need it for something.

“I went to use contactless for fuel in the USA. The woman on the counter looked at me as if I was really thick, took my card and demonstrated how to put a card in a card reader apparently they'd not heard of contactless in Ohio”

Nor in Orlando 2 years ago. They didn’t even have chip and pin. I had to sign my receipts.

TBH I don't find handing over a £5 note any more hassle than using a contactless card. Our local market is cash only and many of the local independent shops have a minimum amount before you can use a card.

I am loving the assumption on here that everyone has an iPhone/iWatch/ iAm a sheep technology.

I have the option to use Android pay on my phone, but just feel uneasy about relying on my phone for absolutely everything. My phone just does not work everywhere round here, and I dislike putting all of my eggs in one basket.

Trills Some of us live on the continent,and it differs as to where you go. Belgium has cards, but not contactless, no Amazon.be as the government won't allow it and cash is an important driver of parts of the economy.

Germany still seems cash orientated in the bits I've been to, and my Euro debit card wasn't accepted, although my UK debit card was.

I have enough in the euro account for anywhere in the EZ if I want to go there.

What do you mean 'not worth it'? What's the difference for you between using your card versus handing over cash that would make the card not worth it? You don't get penalised or charged for choosing to pay by card confused

Where I live a lot of smaller shops still add a surcharge for card payments under certain values - £5/10 - so if I have change in my pocket I am more likely to fritter the money on a bar of chocolate or pack of chewing gum that I don't need but I have the money to hand. If I have to use my card and pay more for the 50p surcharge than the 45p pack of chewing gum costs then I am more likely to think twice about making unnecessary tiny purchases - 50p a day on chewing gum/chocolate/snacks etc is almost £200 a year, if I have cash I would spend it as its only a small sum and I have the coins to hand but it all adds up in the long term.

How do you cashless lot manage when you go to Europe?

This is funny. I'm already in Europe. The UK.

I nearly put that on a post earlier!!