One in five would struggle in a cashless world and prefer notes and coins
Britain is becoming a cashless society against the public’s will, a major new study has found, after the pandemic accelerated the switch to card and digital payments.
Around 10 million people, or one in five adults, would struggle to manage in a society without cash, a report from the Royal Society of Arts commissioned by cash machine network Link found.
The older generation in particular is being left behind. One in three people dependent on cash are above 65. Some four million of those who would struggle most without cash are over 65 years old.
This section of society would face increased isolation, difficulty budgeting and a greater risk of being defrauded without access to physical currency, the report warned. A further 2.5 million of the most vulnerable were between 55 and 64.
This comes after the pandemic dramatically accelerated the country’s move away from notes and coins. The public now withdraws around £100m less from cash machines each day compared to before the pandemic, according to Link.
Meanwhile banks used Covid as an opportunity to accelerate their branch closure programmes. Last summer 99 branches closed their doors on average every month, according to Which?, the consumer group.
Cash machines are also disappearing. The number of free cash points has fallen by a quarter since January 2018, with fewer than 50,000 remaining. Some machines have started to charge for withdrawals, causing usage to fall.
The lack of bank branches has made it more difficult for retailers to deposit or access notes and coins which in turn has “nudged” some retailers and restaurants into refusing cash altogether, Natalie Ceeney of the Access to Cash review said.
Meanwhile the proportion of the population wholly reliant on physical currency has remained strong in the past three years, despite cash’s decline in that time, according to the RSA’s Mark Hall.
Mr Hall said: “For millions of people, their relationship with cash is critical to the way they manage their weekly budget. It’s vital that the dash to digital doesn’t disenfranchise anyone, especially with the cost-of-living crisis putting such significant strain on family finances right now.”
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Around 80pc of people most dependent on cash use it to budget, with seven in 10 claiming they rely on cash to prevent them from falling into debt. Some 90pc of this group were concerned they would leave themselves open to fraud if they were forced to switch to digital payment methods.
The survey found the wider public also worried that a cashless society would reduce their control over finances and debt, lead to higher exposure to fraud, lower their privacy, and increase isolation.
Rural and remote communities were particularly concerned that poor broadband and mobile connectivity would make it harder for them to go fully digital, the report found.
Overall, 23 million people said that using cash made them feel more in control of their finances. Two-thirds were concerned about fraud when making payments and 57pc were concerned about privacy.
Meanwhile separate research commissioned by the Telegraph earlier this year found that six in 10 shoppers would support a move to make cash acceptance compulsory.
The survey, of more than half a million shoppers, also found that nearly half of the British public purposely avoid retailers that do not accept physical currency and that more than half of people believe the country is being pushed into cashlessness against its will.
Source – https://www.telegraph.co.uk/money/consumer-affairs/britain-forced-go-cashless-against-will/