To think we should be able to pay with cash?

[PearLime]

The government should enact a law making it illegal for retailers to accept card only.

It's a discriminatory practice, with elderly, disabled and low income people suffering the negative consequences.

AIBU?

@user1497207191, there are people who only have a basic payg mobile phone, if they have one at all. If you have no spare money, broadband and mobile phone contracts aren't affordable.

[quote KirstenBlest]@user1497207191, there are people who only have a basic payg mobile phone, if they have one at all. If you have no spare money, broadband and mobile phone contracts aren't affordable.[/quote]
You may have misunderstood- the card reader that the aforementioned small and/or portable businesses offer uses their own mobile as a data link, so that you can swipe or tap your card with the vendor whose operation is on a bicycle.

@DGRossetti

Are you saying Amazon are money laundering?

Well Nat West - a bank apparently - has been convicted of just that. No cash involved.

Not quite NatWest have been fined for failing to identify money laundering

@Bathshebahardy

A lot of mobile small businesses like window cleaners use handheld card readers these days. They only cost £50 or so to buy. You link or bluetooth them to your mobile phone.

It’s possible to get them cheaper as well.

SumUp and Zettle readers are £29.99, they have had offers such as £19.99 and Squares reader is £19.20
What you may manage to do is go onto their websites, put a card reader into the cart then leave it. The system may then later email you an ‘offer price’ as cheap as £5

For the seller using it the thing that matters is the cost of sales with any subscription fee, the transaction fee and the timing of transfer to their bank. Then compare that to the cash deposit fee into their business account.

For my friends shop pre lockdown the majority of sales were cash, so they used a card reader service that had no monthly fee, the lowest transaction fee but payments were transferred over the next x working days. But cash sales cost them to bank irrespective of amount.
The delay in banking wasn’t an issue as the shop consists of multiple traders, mostly arts and crafts who get paid for their sales each month. There was little need to have money in the bank quickly to buy in more stock - just to have enough banked at the end of the month for transfers to each trader

During lockdown card sales went up, so they are considering card processing via the bank which will incur monthly costs but a cheaper transaction charge. If enough card sales are maintained then it will be cheaper

Another friend used a card machine but she needs to restock quickly as she goes to events every weekend during the season, if she has a good show with lots of sales then she needs to replenish base materials almost immediately to allow her to then make enough goods for the next weekend. Cash sales then mean she has to bank them before paying suppliers, and she uses a card service with a slightly lower rate which gives her faster payments.

Neither should be dictated on as to whether they take card, cash or both.
They both take all options, and unless it’s a big sale then the cost difference of using cash or card is negligible.

Whether or not they handle cash or card they still need to pay suppliers. It’s not always the case that ‘cheaper for cash’ is hiding from the taxman.
Sometimes it’s cheaper to handle cash - it is spent with the wholesalers / trade store and doesnt get banking fees or transaction fees
Sometimes it influences the customer that they think they are getting an extra special deal on the side
(If your builder is doing everything normally, gives you a quote & bill, plus certificates for the work where applicable, but you’re buying materials and paying cash to the builder then that may be all above board, if they won’t give a bill then it doesn’t exist and you also have no warranty etc)

[quote Hiphopopotamus]@SalsaLove and clearly your Dads experience is universal, despite the contradicting anecdotes from previous posters [/quote]
Well it's mr dads experience too

He doesn't need to stress about counting out money and getting short changed

Much easier to tap his card

@Bloodypunkrockers I'm glad that you've had an experience where your relative has learned to use a card before their illness meant they couldn't retain that information. Unfortunately, it's not like that for everyone.

My relative would be stood holding a bank card, confused how to use it, but would be able to recognise and use cash quite well.

See, he's been around cash his whole life, but contactless card payments have only been in use since AFTER his dementia started.

Quite a lot of ignorant people on this thread and frankly stupid comments.

[quote Kk789]@Bloodypunkrockers I'm glad that you've had an experience where your relative has learned to use a card before their illness meant they couldn't retain that information. Unfortunately, it's not like that for everyone.

My relative would be stood holding a bank card, confused how to use it, but would be able to recognise and use cash quite well.

See, he's been around cash his whole life, but contactless card payments have only been in use since AFTER his dementia started.

Quite a lot of ignorant people on this thread and frankly stupid comments.[/quote]
It's frankly stupid to say that all old people would struggle

Some might, but generalising does everyone a disservice

[quote Kk789]@Bloodypunkrockers I'm glad that you've had an experience where your relative has learned to use a card before their illness meant they couldn't retain that information. Unfortunately, it's not like that for everyone.

My relative would be stood holding a bank card, confused how to use it, but would be able to recognise and use cash quite well.

See, he's been around cash his whole life, but contactless card payments have only been in use since AFTER his dementia started.

Quite a lot of ignorant people on this thread and frankly stupid comments.[/quote]
Yes, "contactless" is pretty recent, but debit and credit cards have been mainstream since the 80s, that's 30-40 years ago, and no one is forcing you to use contactless - all the machines I've seen still let you put in your card and type the PIN number if you prefer. I doubt your relative has had dementia since the 80's.

This is the trouble when "middle aged" people turn against technological change, they may be able to function with "old fashioned" methodology at the time, simply because tech usually takes decades to fully change, but those middle aged people suddenly find themselves struggling when they get old/confused and they have to use the tech because the "old fashioned" ways are no longer possible.

We are heading towards becoming a cashless society and eventually world. The world changes quite rapidly and sadly some fall behind. It’s always been this way, just think of how many struggled and still struggle using the internet. Contactless payments are a lot easier for many people with LD because there’s no money to count and take care of.

@Generallystruggling

We are heading towards becoming a cashless society and eventually world. The world changes quite rapidly and sadly some fall behind. It’s always been this way, just think of how many struggled and still struggle using the internet. Contactless payments are a lot easier for many people with LD because there’s no money to count and take care of.

Whilst I agree generally, I don't really think that change is "quite rapidly" at all. It may seem that way, but in fact, a lot of changes are realllllly slow when you compare the dates they are first rolled out compared to the dates when the alternatives are finally withdrawn - you're usually talking decades.

Take banking, I was doing remote "telephone" banking via a handheld keypad back in the early 90s where I could check my balance, pay bills, etc. I started doing internet banking in the late 90s and early 00's, so 20 years ago!

[quote Kk789]@Bloodypunkrockers I'm glad that you've had an experience where your relative has learned to use a card before their illness meant they couldn't retain that information. Unfortunately, it's not like that for everyone.

My relative would be stood holding a bank card, confused how to use it, but would be able to recognise and use cash quite well.

See, he's been around cash his whole life, but contactless card payments have only been in use since AFTER his dementia started.

Quite a lot of ignorant people on this thread and frankly stupid comments.[/quote]
There are some stupid comments on here.
Some people struggle with cash, some struggle with cards, and benefit from using one or the other

However the context of the question is whether traders should be forced by law to accept cash

@Generallystruggling

We are heading towards becoming a cashless society and eventually world. The world changes quite rapidly and sadly some fall behind. It’s always been this way, just think of how many struggled and still struggle using the internet. Contactless payments are a lot easier for many people with LD because there’s no money to count and take care of.

And it's okay the "some fall behind" when it comes to something as necessary as buying food?

Yes, the internet is used all the time, but ultimately if you cannot access it for whatever reason, life still goes on, you can still pay bills, buy food etc.

If you do not have the cognitive ability to use a debit card - whether that's because of dementia, a learning difficulty, any reason - you loose any independence you may have if you cannot buy things under your own steam.

All people are saying is we should have access to both cash and cashless methods of payments - everyone has access that way.

@PearLime

The government should enact a law making it illegal for retailers to accept card only.

It's a discriminatory practice, with elderly, disabled and low income people suffering the negative consequences.

AIBU?

No, the only "Law" should be that retailers and other businesses make it clear what forms of payment they will accept, i.e. signs on shop doors and around the tills etc. That will stop the wasted time/embarrassment of coming to pay only to find they either accept only cash or don't accept cash.

I don't care what they will or won't accept, but I want to know early on in the transaction. That way I can choose to take my custom to a different retailer/business who WILL accept my preferred choice of payment.

Cash is just madey-uppy anyway ...

Retailers also need to have a system in place for when the card reader/Visa system go down. I don't expect to be inconvenienced if I've filled my car with petrol for example and then can't pay through no fault of my own. When that happened at my local Tesco they locked the customers in the petrol station shop and refused to allow them to leave.

@NeedAHoliday2021 Your 13yr old is homeless?????

I prefer cash. But card is more convenient for some things. If we went cashless I don't think young people would learn the value of money. No more physical pocket money for saving and counting it out. The excitement of counting to see if you have enough for that one thing you have been saving for.

Cash will be here until 2026 and then it’s cards all the way from now.

I was in my local newsagents this morning at the same time as all the local High School kids and everyone of them, that bought something from the shop, were all using GoHenry prepayment cards!

From then not now

HateJudgementalPeople How do you know it will be cashless from 2024??

I work in an independent restaurant/coffee shop....my boss refuses to take cash...we've had a few comments but he won't back down.

@myusernamewastakenbyme

I work in an independent restaurant/coffee shop....my boss refuses to take cash...we've had a few comments but he won't back down.

That's fine, his business, his choice as long as it's made clear to potential customers and they don't find out when it's too late, i.e. after they've waited/ordered etc.

Legislating to either force businesses to accept cash or force them to accept credit cards is a step too far. There should be freedom and choice. Customers can choose to use or not to use a business that won't accept their preferred payment choice, but as I say, there needs to be clarity from the earliest point (i.e. shop window/door etc) if there are any restrictions either way.

@PinkSparklyPussyCat

Retailers also need to have a system in place for when the card reader/Visa system go down. I don't expect to be inconvenienced if I've filled my car with petrol for example and then can't pay through no fault of my own. When that happened at my local Tesco they locked the customers in the petrol station shop and refused to allow them to leave.

Where was this?

For a long time garages have had procedures in place to deal with customers who can’t pay, sometimes this involved leaving an item behind. Eg a watch, which could have been a cheap one from the market vs a tank full of fuel, but more reliably signing a form declaring your intent to be and your car registration number going to the police for theft if you don’t return to pay when agreed

I’d rather not say where it was on here as I don’t want to announce where I live.

Leaving a watch is ok-ish if it’s my fault I can’t pay but there’s no way I’d leave anything if it was the garage’s fault. They could have my retails and ring me when their card machine was working again - why should I make a special journey when I could have paid cash?

@JollyAndBright

YABU

Everyone can have a bank account, even the homeless. There’s no reason everyone can’t use cards other than personal preference.

if that if your preference you can shop in shops that take cash and not everywhere else.

You are woefully misinformed if you think it's easy for everyone to get a bank account and for everyone to operate a bank account.