Active discussions

Meet the Other Phone. Only the apps you allow.

Meet the Other Phone.
Only the apps you allow.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

Talk
AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

To be sick of cashless society

612 replies

Ihatepcos · 10/01/2023 09:31

I prefer to use cash, I always have.

I find budgeting and spending so much easier. If I am tapping away on my card I think nothing of constant £3 £6 etc being spent on things I probably wouldn't buy if I was spending cash.

More and more places simply don't take cash and it's driving me mad.

OP posts:
Thread gallery
6
Mushroo · 10/01/2023 11:33

@Verbena17 most of those are not actual reasons.

  • Domestic violence. Unfortunate, but most people have their own bank account (all online so no statements) they could squirrel into.
  • Off marketplace? What does that even mean? Just use bank transfer.
  • Garage sales, again, just give bank details to allow instant transfer. I would use my Monzo details (which is a different account to my ‘main’ bank account.
  • Homeless - give to a charity or buy them a sandwich which is the advice anyway
  • Grandparents, write a little note in the card and bank transfer. Either to parents account or most kids have a bank account from the age of about 8 anyway. I loved looking at my little savings book as a kid, made me feel grown up.
  • Tooth fairy - can give gifts instead of cash. (Also, rejecting progress because of a mythical creature is ridiculous)
  • Selling bits and pieces, again bank transfer. I’ve done this loads on Facebook marketplace
  • less choices based on affordability. Not sure what this even means
I want more control over cash. As a law abiding citizen, I have no problem with my spending being tracked, and if it cuts down on drugs, stolen goods, human trafficking, great!
iwanttobelikegracekelly · 10/01/2023 11:34

I am alright, and lets face it we aren't going to be a cashless society anytime soon anyway.

Well I'm glad you are alright, same can't be said for the vulnerable people you have no issue with being disadvantaged further, for the sake of a little convenience for you.

And no, cashless is not inevitable - IF we want to protect the vulnerable and also those who value their privacy. The right to cash can be legislated. It has been in some countries.

It has to be asked why you are so against others having the choice?

NowDoYouBelieveMe · 10/01/2023 11:34

Badbadbunny · 10/01/2023 11:31

@Lavendersquare

What do these places do if there's no internet?

There are fewer and fewer locations without internet. The network is expanding and improving day by day. In our village, I could never get a mobile signal in my office and would have to walk up the drive to get a couple of bars. A few months ago, my mobile rang whilst I was sat at my desk, and it was a hell of a shock! 4 bars signal and even 4g internet!

If, say, a shop really can't get internet, either by mobile signal or landline, then obviously they wouldn't set themselves up as "card only" would they? But they'll also have other issues without internet, such as being unable to use the internet to buy goods, file their VAT returns, pay bills by online banking, check emails, etc etc! So unlikely to be much of a business really!

Not sure where you are, but I was in a pub the other day that had no phone signal, and was cash only. Not in the back of beyond either.

(It was great, as even though we didn't all know each other very well, we all had a proper chat instead of speaking for a few minutes between checking phones.)

Claretmum · 10/01/2023 11:34

Verbena17 · 10/01/2023 11:33

As much I love them….Center Parcs is now totally cashless. Even for restaurant tips. So they add on 7.5% to bills but you can obviously remove it.

Show quote history

Yes one downside to cashless is the lack of tips now for hospitality staff!

Beees · 10/01/2023 11:35

Recently had a meal in a Cafè where when I went to pay with my card I was asked if I had cash, fortunately I do carry a bit but do prefer to use my card as reward points are pretty good.
Same question was asked to everyone that made a purchase.

Thay sounds quite dodgy to be honest. Does that mean they didn't accept card at all, which should have been made clear to you before you ordered or that they did accept card but would prefer cash payment which would ring alarm bells.

CatJumperTwat · 10/01/2023 11:35

iwanttobelikegracekelly · 10/01/2023 11:34

I am alright, and lets face it we aren't going to be a cashless society anytime soon anyway.

Well I'm glad you are alright, same can't be said for the vulnerable people you have no issue with being disadvantaged further, for the sake of a little convenience for you.

And no, cashless is not inevitable - IF we want to protect the vulnerable and also those who value their privacy. The right to cash can be legislated. It has been in some countries.

It has to be asked why you are so against others having the choice?

What about the vulnerable people being trafficked, prostituted, or used for county lines, all facilitated by cash? Don't you care about THOSE vulnerable people?

Badbadbunny · 10/01/2023 11:36

Sparklingbrook · 10/01/2023 11:29

The twentysomething DSs got some cash for Christmas this year-they paid it straight into the bank, they don't use cash either.

Yep, DS got cash from his grandmother - just gave it to us to put in our drawer (along with the pile of cash she's given him from previous birthdays and christmases). We just do a transfer to DSs bank account so he can spend it as he wishes. Meanwhile, we have a growing pile of cash that never gets spent - we don't have a cash machine nearby that accepts deposits and we keep meaning to take it when we go to the "big town" where there is a bank branch, but we keep forgetting! When he started Uni, he took a couple of ten pound notes for "spends" but that was 2.5 years ago, and they're still in his phone case - he's never needed cash for anything - just swipes his card in shops, cafes, bars, etc.

iwanttobelikegracekelly · 10/01/2023 11:36

Domestic violence. Unfortunate, but most people have their own bank account (all online so no statements) they could squirrel into.

What an astonishing lack of awareness or care. Unfortunate indeed! 😮😮 And you think domestic abuse victims have access to bank accounts which are not monitored by their abuser?

PuttingDownRoots · 10/01/2023 11:36

@Mushroo do you honestly think someone who is being financially abused has their own bank account?

NowDoYouBelieveMe · 10/01/2023 11:37

Mushroo · 10/01/2023 11:33

@Verbena17 most of those are not actual reasons.

  • Domestic violence. Unfortunate, but most people have their own bank account (all online so no statements) they could squirrel into.
  • Off marketplace? What does that even mean? Just use bank transfer.
  • Garage sales, again, just give bank details to allow instant transfer. I would use my Monzo details (which is a different account to my ‘main’ bank account.
  • Homeless - give to a charity or buy them a sandwich which is the advice anyway
  • Grandparents, write a little note in the card and bank transfer. Either to parents account or most kids have a bank account from the age of about 8 anyway. I loved looking at my little savings book as a kid, made me feel grown up.
  • Tooth fairy - can give gifts instead of cash. (Also, rejecting progress because of a mythical creature is ridiculous)
  • Selling bits and pieces, again bank transfer. I’ve done this loads on Facebook marketplace
  • less choices based on affordability. Not sure what this even means
I want more control over cash. As a law abiding citizen, I have no problem with my spending being tracked, and if it cuts down on drugs, stolen goods, human trafficking, great!

Ah, the old "if you're doing nothing wrong, you have nothing to fear" argument.

Usually said by someone who has never experienced a dictatorial government, or ever met anyone who has.

I just can't trust authority the way you do.

pishkashalante · 10/01/2023 11:37

Itschristmastimeinthecity · 10/01/2023 11:20

Haha, I love this. If only we thought outside the box for once 😂

Show quote history

Thanks! They did split the transaction but no one thanked me for the idea ☺️

Badbadbunny · 10/01/2023 11:37

Claretmum · 10/01/2023 11:34

Yes one downside to cashless is the lack of tips now for hospitality staff!

Show quote history

Almost every time I've paid by card in a restaurant, the machine reader machine asks if I want to add a tip!

ClubhouseGift · 10/01/2023 11:38

You are going to have to change. It’s just as easy (if not easier) to budget on card, you just need to learn how to.

Even if we don’t get rid of all cash (and we should), the majority of places will end up cashless pretty soon. If you don’t adapt, you’ll just be complaining you’re left behind when you had chance to do something about it.

Honeyroar · 10/01/2023 11:38

whataboutsecondbreakfast · 10/01/2023 09:37

YANBU.

So many people argue for a cashless society without thinking about the implications it has on the most vulnerable.

It also costs many small businesses to take card payments whereas you keep all the cash you make.

It costs me to pay cash into my business account, about the same as the card machine charges. And I have to physically go to pay it in on my day off. Plus the paying in machines won’t accept creased notes. And the card transactions go straight onto my online accounts without me doing much. It’s just so much easier. So while I do take cash still, I probably prefer card payments. I probably get 60% card payments.

Badbadbunny · 10/01/2023 11:38

NowDoYouBelieveMe · 10/01/2023 11:37

Ah, the old "if you're doing nothing wrong, you have nothing to fear" argument.

Usually said by someone who has never experienced a dictatorial government, or ever met anyone who has.

I just can't trust authority the way you do.

Show quote history

If "authority" is out to get you, your bank account is the least of your worries!

Iamnotausername · 10/01/2023 11:38

A shop closed by us recently. It was obviously going to close when they stopped taking card payments. They said it was because of technical issues but I suspect it was because they couldn' get cash out of their bank account or were hiding assets and were relying on physical cash to pay everything. Staff were moaning about being paid in cash however I suspect they are now releived that the owners saw this coming and tried to make sure they got paid before everything was seized.

pishkashalante · 10/01/2023 11:39

Claretmum · 10/01/2023 11:34

Yes one downside to cashless is the lack of tips now for hospitality staff!

Show quote history

You can still tip cash.

If there’s a service charge added to the bill, I ask
staff if they receive the tips, and if they say no, I tell them I’ll pay the service charge amount in cash if they remove it from the bill.

Mushroo · 10/01/2023 11:39

@PuttingDownRoots i suspect a lot will actually.

And the scenario of abuse is obviously awful, but I don’t think it should stop the move to cashless. It would be like saying we shouldn’t sell knives because you can use them to kill someone.

Abusers always find a way - we should do more to help with domestic violence, and that is a separate issue to the move to card payments.

NowDoYouBelieveMe · 10/01/2023 11:40

Badbadbunny · 10/01/2023 11:38

If "authority" is out to get you, your bank account is the least of your worries!

Show quote history

Hmm yeah I understand what camp you're in.

Others will understand mine.

latetothefisting · 10/01/2023 11:41

I really don't get this rationale....if I've decided to buy something and have gone to the effort of choosing the specific item, walking to the till and queuing, I've already committed to buying it. The method of payment I'm going to use doesn't make any difference or inpact on my thinking. Are you saying you'd go to the till, wait in a queue, but your stuff through the till but then when the cashier asked for payment, if you didn't have your card or they didn't accept cards you'd change your mind and walk out without buying anything?

Because that's quite extreme, and not to mention annoying for the business!

bringmetheheadofpastaalfredo · 10/01/2023 11:41

Ihatepcos · 10/01/2023 09:31

I prefer to use cash, I always have.

I find budgeting and spending so much easier. If I am tapping away on my card I think nothing of constant £3 £6 etc being spent on things I probably wouldn't buy if I was spending cash.

More and more places simply don't take cash and it's driving me mad.

I don't gtet this complaint. Your inability to budget properly is not everyone elses fault, and complaining that the whole world isn't set up to facilitate you in particular is just so arrogant.

It's far easier to budget with a card. Get a revolut. You can see ervything you spend, you can track your spending, you can set a budget, you can get reminders of if you've spent more than you've planned, you can save in different vaults and split bills and send moeny to others.

Just grow up and drag yourself into the 21st century....

TooHotToRamble · 10/01/2023 11:42

I worry about when I am accused of a crime I haven't committed and have to go off grid to prove my innocence.....

MondayMorningsSuckBalls · 10/01/2023 11:42

If you’ve got more than one account, put your ‘cash’ in there. You’re only allowed to spend what’s in that account and once it’s gone it’s gone. No transferring and no withdrawing. We do that and it works.

housemaus · 10/01/2023 11:42

I've not carried cash regularly for 15 years! I didn't realise anyone still did over using card, tbh.

senua · 10/01/2023 11:42

I'm another one who never uses cash - I pay with my Apple Watch for everything.
And you got that watch for free, did you? Your 'convenience' is costing you a lot of money and making somebody else very rich.

Swipe left for the next trending thread