How to avoid making cash payments

[NonnoMum]

In the light of the recent election, i now want to be much more socially responsible when i am making a payment for goods or services. For instance, I want to ensure that if I pay a plumber/hairdresser/kids' dance lessons the recipient is declaring their tax and not avoiding any tax like any good, loyal British worker would.
How do i do this? Always ask for a paper invoice? Always make an electronic payment
Interested in the legal position on this.

I have a trade. I rarely give invoices to customers (no one wants one/care). I am often paid in cash. I still declare it all. The assumption that I don't/ won't really annoys me. I've even had some clients pay in cash explicitly telling me it's so I don't have to pay tax on it all. I still declare it all. Someone taking cash as payment doesn't necessarily mean they aren't paying their share.
IME (from chatting to other trades) the tradespeople who most likely to be either habitual or large-scale tax evaders are the ones doing small jobs on the way home (easy to quietly pocket £30 from an add-on), and those offering a cash price for a discount (without any asking on your part). Generally, if you have someone in for several days doing a job they will need to declare it, however you pay, so they can pay their bills that month. If you are concerned, just pay via bank transfer with 'Ms X new boiler' or whatever as the reference, so there is a paper trail. The tax man will eventually catch up with them and these incomes will be flagged. If you are certain someone is evading tax, then report them.

I’m always trying to give people receipts for paying most refuse. I’d rather not take cheques as they cost over £1 to bank which isn’t good for profits if they’ve only spent £5!
All the card payment processors are big financial companies I bet they do they’re best to avoid tax.

Do you have a pension op? If you want to avoid tax avoiders you should ensure that you are not employing the services of anyone paying into a pension as that’s one of the most effective ways to avoid tax. Not sure how you’d police that or why you would want to take that stance but there you go. Each to their own.

Same as @Kazzyhoward. I can't think of any trades that don't offer cash discount! We decline..not prepared to pay out thousands and have no evidence in case it goes wrong.

I pay loads of people in cash. I have no reason to assume that they aren't paying their tax. DD's maths tutor. The cleaner. The mobile hairdresser. No receipt. Dancing lessons we pay by bank transfer, but still no receipt. Why would I ask my cleaner for a receipt - she comes in and it's perfectly obvious that she's done the work. Similarly with a hair cut - plus there's the added proof that I have to physically be there while she's doing the work...

Lots of industries where people pay in cash declare all the cash and pay tax on it and lots of industries where everyone pays by bank account also have people not paying tax and evading it.

If you want to ask someone who is usually paid in cash if they will accept a bank transfer then just ask them - plenty of places accept either (I pay for my supermarket shopping and petrol etc in cash and I very much doubt Waitrose and tesco are hiding the cash in the back office and not putting it through their systems to evade tax on it)

(I pay for my supermarket shopping and petrol etc in cash and I very much doubt Waitrose and tesco are hiding the cash in the back office and not putting it through their systems to evade tax on it)

The OP was talking about sole traders who don't have the same systems, segregation of duties, audits, etc as a national supermarket. So you're comparing chalk and cheese.

I am a sole trader. I don't have anyone who chooses to pay me in cash but it is not illegal to be paid in cash and I pay heaps and heaps of tax on every penny of profit I earn.