To think you still need to carry cash?

[Happinessforever]

Another example of me feeling old and out of touch

More and more people don't seem to carry cash, especially young people in their twenties or under. Need to pay something at work? It's a PayPal transfer, same for splitting a meal. Travel all by app. Same with shopping.

But I can't not have money on me 'just incase'. Always have at least a fiver but usually about £40.

So, AIBU to think you always need cash? Or am I clinging onto an old outdated habit

I prefer cash as I can physically see what I have spent. If I got shopping (not food) I prefer cash. I take out the max I can spend then I know I haven't spent more than I can afford. If there's anything left I can put it back in at the bank whilst out or keep at home for emergencies

Only use it in one micropub that is cash only and for parking the car in some of the smaller carparks in town (bigger ones take cards/phone account) and that's it.

64 here. I have a £5 in my purse and one in my phone case. They've both been there for months. I can't remember the last time I withdrew any cash

Its fine until an important card reader fails. DD got kicked off the bus on her way to school the other day as the bus card reader wouldn't read her card.

I feel really sorry for her Londonmummy66. Assuming it was in London from your user name, is it worth complaining to TfL? On the rare occasions the card reader is not working when I am on a bus, the driver is told to let the passengers on. Really bad when she was presumably wearing uniform and it was clear she had an oyster student card.

Mainly cashless here. On the odd occasion a need a few quid in cash I raid the pound coin stash in the car or the change jar in the kitchen. My husband always carries cash.

If it had been London having cash would not have made any difference.

Good point joyfullittlehippo still a shame about the driver though. Read another thread here a few weeks ago from someone who’s son’s iphone got damaged. He had his bus season ticket on the phone and was told there was no way they could refund it while the phone was out of action. It really put me off putting a season ticket onto a phone.

The card readers on the bus in London do quite regularly stop working. But the driver has no capacity to take cash so they just let you on free.

I never have cash on me (in UK) and have come unstuck a few times.
In Cornwall in March I found many car parks were still cash only, that was no change from when I was last there a few years ago. Staying in Polperro, I didn't need cash as bought a car park pass from the owner of our accommodation. However, others got stuck as the car park is cash only...(there's only one car park, away from the village) so people were having to walk down the hill, pay to use the cash point and then walk up again (about 15 minutes each day, but a few had toddlers and it took ages.. you can't drive down there, which is all good environment wise and the roads are too narrow anyway..but it's a bit rotten that the ticket machine won't take cards). And that's no good when the post office where the cash machine is, is closed as it's inside.
Just been to Ireland and have to pay cash to use the public toilets.. it was weird carrying coins around again

I'm 26 and always have cash on me. I prefer it!

@Happinessforever

YANBU.

I always carry cash - maybe £20 to £30 in notes, and 10 to 12 pounds in change. Not everywhere accepts cards, and even the places that do, sometimes won''t accept a debit card for less than a tenner, OR they charge a pound - or £1.50 or so - to use your debit card.

I get out a lot, and can go to 40 to 50 different places in any given month. (In several different village and towns.) Including little farm shops, gift shops, garden centres, train station kiosks, roadside cafes, little cafes, big supermarkets, little paper shops, petrol stations, small independent bakeries and card shops and haberdasheries, various market stalls, and all sorts.......

Not every single place I visit has a card machine, and as I said, some of the ones who do, charge for it.

There's also parking machines. I know some take debit cards, but some don't. The ones in my little local town don't take cards; you HAVE to have the cash.

My adult DC never carry cash, and when I am with them, the need for cash ALWAYS materialises! We go into a little charity shop, and they find a small item they want for £1.35 or so, and the shop will only let customers use a debit if the transaction is over £10.00. OR they charge £1.50 to use the debit card - so it's not worth it. OR you find yourself having to find other stuff to make up the ten pounds!!! So I end up paying for it.

Also, when we pop into a little independent coffee shop, and they only take cash, or if they want something from a little kiosk on the street that only takes cash, I end up paying EVERY TIME. (Because I am the only one with cash.)

It genuinely baffles me how ANYone can go through life, never carrying cash. I never go a single week without needing a bit (or more than a bit) of actual cash...

Because they're always cadging it off other people. See also the people who don't carry bags and then try to put all their bits and pieces in the bags of people who bothered to bring one.

Because they're always cadging it off other people. See also the people who don't carry bags and then try to put all their bits and pieces in the bags of people who bothered to bring one.

I never have to cadge off other people. Maybe it is different in the UK but I can blip my card in charity shops for any amount, small independent places tend to have square readers or similar, car parks have either apps or contactless and this is in small town Ireland not some technological hub. If I come across somewhere that doesn't take cards(can't remember the last time that happened though) I leave. I have a square reader for markets I occasionally do. It isn't hard for places to offer card options.

Cashless is convenient for most but what about those that don’t have cards/phones. I’m at the point where I’ll start to let my son walk to the shop and back but I don’t want him to have a smartphone or a bank card for quite a few years yet. It’s very shortsighted of society as a whole to exclude the young, poor and disadvantaged from things like public transport.

Thank you to everyone for all the interesting replies. I still think the Tooth Fairy holds out for cash but everything else appears to be automated now.

I'm going to give cashless lite a go, only having a fiver on me and see how I manage.

Still didn't find out what the illegal activity a PP sited as cash only is. Drugs? Sex? Interesting times.

I'm also going to have a go at using my card where possible, but I will continue to keep some cash, as I will not be using a card for purchases significantly under £5, nor will I be paying extra to use a card eg parking or small shops.

As it happens, I withdrew £60 this morning, and I've already handed out £5 for a meal deposit, £20 for a group exercise class and I need about £20 for another meal out early next week, so I've already accounted for most of it that was more or less unavoidable in that wanting to use a card/electronic payment would have been impossible or made it very awkward for someone else.

I get money out when the window cleaner is due to be paid, to get my hair done, or for my gardeners.

Other than that just so i can give a tip when we get a takeaway.

I'm in my 50's.

I know a lot of people on Disability benefits who draw cash out because the DWP more and more study your bank accounts. They're claiming legitimately but after the Police sharing protesters information with the DWP and benefits being reviewed/stopped, they are nervous.

It would be interesting if not carrying cash had an impact on mugging rates.

I know phone thefts went down when those on contract could be shut down.

I don't understand that argument about the DWP or friends/neighbours like on another thread earlier this week scrutinising the way that benefit claimants spend their money.

Surely spending all in cash can be equally suspicious as using a card, not that it will be in most cases. After all, the cash could be being spent in the pub, bookies and on fags and scratchcards at the newsagents.

I know phone thefts went down when those on contract could be shut down

But how does this work in practice? Steal a phone in a busy area and you could use it to buy quite a lot of cashlike items within minutes - I can't think what they are right now, but there's a list of things that thieves typically go out and buy with stolen cards and phones because it's almost as good as having the cash.

So for the phone owner, how long will it take you to cancel your phone contract and report it stolen, when you have absolutely no details that you would need on how to do this, because all your information is in your phone.

I agree with you OP. I use paypal and credit cards, but I always have at least £20 in my phone case "just in case". I try to never get stuck where I have to put everything on credit card.

Or your card for that matter if it's your card not your phone that is stolen.

When I lost my card on holiday, I phoned up to cancel, and was treated with suspicion because I had the details, because in my 'emergency bits and pieces on holiday' I have a copy of my passport, all my travel docs and the cards I use abroad. The person I spoke to made it clear that it was very unusual to have access to this information.

I've just remembered, i always have £1 on me, as well as a token, for supermarket trolleys.

There was a local hospice raffling a car, £5 a ticket, in a local shopping centre and nearly every woman 18-60, had to go to the cash machine, including me.

My workplace doesn’t accept card so you need to carry cash! Learned that the hard way on 3 hours sleep when I was in dire need of caffeine..

I hate having to use cash, it just always seems such a hassle keeping track of how much I have and not running out.