To ask if you keep cash at home for emergencies?

[Lookatmemeow]

By emergencies I mean things like

• mass credit card failure
• power cuts
• banking systems going down

I don't routinely keep cash at home but considering it to mitigate for issues out of my hands. AIBU to ask if you keep emergency cash and how much?

@Gotthetshirt23

They would have to chop up the floor boards; it's bolted down to the floor and the wall behind from the inside of the safe. And it took 3 men to lift the thing when I moved so a casual burglar would have a hard time getting it out. It's not a hotel safe type thing; proper big safe. I needed it due to the diamonds, gold and silver I keep in my home studio (jeweller).

We got burgled once , we interrupted them but they got the penny jar. Only about £20 but I think you'd be mad to have significant amounts of cash "hidden" about the house.

We've been burgled 5x, lost computers, tvs, radios, Ipods, etc - the visual stuff easy to grab, but never lost any of the stashed cash.

We usually have around £300-£1,000 in the safe, I aways have cash on me too but usually only £20-£60

Not a stash as such but I have one of those big coca cola money bottles things that we fill with any change at the end of the day

I very rarely have cash in the house shit just reminded me need to pay the window cleaner today, better go and get some cash out!!

That's what kids money boxes are for, aren't they?

The window cleaner has hardly ever been paid any other way.

I'm still wondering about needing a stash of cash for a power cut....

@Saidthesharktotheflyingfish

Town wide power cut = no cash machines.

Some shops could still operate, but no card payments either.

Nope. Only have enough to get through each month as it is so can't afford to put any aside for emergencies! It's a very good idea though.

I think we have £350 in a mixture of coins and notes. Reading some of your posts bow considering increasing that

Also keep £20 note in first aid kit as just seemed a useful thing to have available for emergency taxi rides etc.

We keep £100-150 in the house but it's more for things like an unplanned takeaway, taxi, trip somewhere that won't take cards (e.g. a craft market) without having to find a cash machine first rather than a mass banking failure type scenario. Generally try to have a minimum of £20 in my purse for same sort of reasons, and a bit in the car for an emergency taxi/coins for car park machines (£20 note + £10 or so in change usually).

Shops shut when there are power cuts. It's happened where I live a number of times. Most tills these days wont even open in a power cut.

@Saidthesharktotheflyingfish

I had a little boutique in glasgow; I stayed open in a power cut. Lots of the little boutiques in the lane stayed open also.

I live rurally; our farm shop stays open. Usually with a good discount to get rid of the meat incase the power cut lasts a while!

I have some old pound coins I keep forgetting to take to the bank, do those count ?

Nothing. That won’t be changing.

I tell you what though, if I've got no power, the last thing I'd be doing would be clothes shopping We're rural too, but everywhere shuts here in a power cut. I'd be frantically bringing wood for the fire, and probably swearing because I couldnt see to find the matches, candles and torches.

It's interesting because my parents had a pub, and during the 70s when everyone was on a rota of power cuts due to strikes, our pub did stay open, lit by candles and heated with Super Ser calor gas heaters if anyone remembers them. Mind you, we had an Arkwright style till so could at least take payments. The pubs here shut if it happens now.

We do have some cash at home but not because of a zombie apocalypse. Mainly a degree of laziness mixed with the desire not to use an ATM unless totally necessary.

Not a penny, no point.

Not on purpose no. There probably is about £200 around in kids money boxes, in piles where DH empties his pockets.

Yes always. Usually £20-£30. Generally if I need to send one of my DC to the shops to get something or pay for that odd takeaway on an evening I am feeling overly tired.

I rarely have money in my purse, have £2 in the car and a pile of coppers in a kitchen cupboard.
Although I do have one of those banks you need to smash and it's almost full.

I've watched doomsday preppers, as PP said, money wouldn't really be worth much if society all went to shit. They keep alcohol like stong whiskeys and vodkas as it's a good bargaining tool, good to drink, Molotov cocktail if needed, disinfects wounds, help starting a fire etc. Worth more than cash in real world terms.
In fact a lot of people on the show are preparing for a financial crisis as it's the most likely possibility.

Only ever have small amount of cash in purse and DHs wallet. There's usually some left over Euros in the filing cabinet and currently around £160 worth of Norwegian Kroner i haven't converted back to sterling yet! But definitely not contingency funds for an emergency.

I was in Aldi when there was a Visa outage but had (just) enough cash to buy what I wanted - I think MasterCard was still ok too so could use that as a backup. Then all but one of the five cash machines in the village ran out of money because so many people were withdrawing cash. It was a right PITA so I can totally see the value of having an emergency £200 (or thereabouts) for essentials.