Using cash - how often?

[kiethton]

It's just come to me that I haven't used cash in what must be well over a month now, I rarely even carry any, instead doing everything on my Amex/Mastercard (barring bloody Lidl/Aldi which insist on debit...grrrr).

The only regular things which I actually need cash for are the butchers local to work for the very occasional sausage/bacon baguette (Bow Lane), the Barber for the bi-monthly haircut or the Tyre fitter working from his shed.

Its not through lack of purchases either; I eat out at least once a week, am at the pub at least 3/4 times a week, take the train most days over winter and buy lunch at work daily.

Is anybody the same? - does anybody actually use cash regularly still?

Edited by kiethton on Wednesday 19th February 16:04

[Du1point8]

I trade cash for beer tokens and other than that its card.

Unless Im trading it for a takeaway and then I need more cash.

[kiethton]

Du1point8 said:

I trade cash for beer tokens and other than that its card.

Unless Im trading it for a takeaway and then I need more cash.

That's the thing, the man behind the bar/counter even takes my card based tokens so don't even need them then!

[BorkFactor]

I am the exact opposite, I pay for virtually everything in cash. I take out a certain amount at the start of every week and try to stick to that amount.

Not really sure why, I have always done this.

[dingg]

BorkFactor said:

I am the exact opposite, I pay for virtually everything in cash. I take out a certain amount at the start of every week and try to stick to that amount.

Not really sure why, I have always done this.

same here - hate using cards unless its for something substantial

love a lot of folding in my pocket - hate wallets

[RicksAlfas]

I use cash everyday. Not in a "loads of money" type of way, but I wouldn't buy a sandwich or a birthday card with a credit card.

[Boydie88]

kiethton said:

That's the thing, the man behind the bar/counter even takes my card based tokens so don't even need them then!

Few things worse than card wkers when waiting at the bar.

[P-Jay]

Used to be a cash only person, I'd make a detour to a cash machine to buy something for cash when they'd obviously take cards.

Gone completely the other way now, at the moment I have a singular 50p coin on me, and that's only because the self-service till in Tesco didn't like it.

It's been a real eye opener to how much money I waste on crap.

[RizzoTheRat]

BorkFactor said:

I am the exact opposite, I pay for virtually everything in cash. I take out a certain amount at the start of every week and try to stick to that amount.

Not really sure why, I have always done this.

My Mrs tends to do that, started when she was a student as it was a good way of keeping track of her money when on a budget.

I do everything on card and only use cash in pubs, markets and the café we have breakfast in once a week, or the occasional cheap thing like some milk on the way home. why would I use cash when I get cashback by using my credit card? I still seem to get through a surprising amount of cash though.

[Dan_1981]

Card for everything.

Except when i'm out boozing.

Hate paying on my card in busy pubs / bars.

[kiethton]

Boydie88 said:

kiethton said:

That's the thing, the man behind the bar/counter even takes my card based tokens so don't even need them then!

Few things worse than card wkers when waiting at the bar.

hahaha true, I do use the contactless payment when offered though...

Day to day the average transaction put on my Amex is comfortably under £5, hell even today's lunch (costing 50p) was put on the card...

[RizzoTheRat]

The only contactless card I've got is my work one, always worried I'm going to accidentally get my wallet too close to the machine and pay on that one rather than my own chip and pin

[nicanary]

BorkFactor said:

I am the exact opposite, I pay for virtually everything in cash. I take out a certain amount at the start of every week and try to stick to that amount.

Not really sure why, I have always done this.

Ditto. I have a budget for weekly spending, and when it's gone I wait till the next week. I put it down to a period of unemployment - you have to live to a strict limit.

BTW many small shops hate you using cards - they have to pay bank charges for every transaction, however small. This especially applies to shops in the "grey industries" like fast food. They don't like traceable transactions since it's unlikely they declare all their sales to the Inland Revenue.

[BrabusMog]

dingg said:

same here - hate using cards unless its for something substantial

love a lot of folding in my pocket - hate wallets

Me too, I use cards for transactions over £100 or if I am buying clothes (so that I'm forced to hold on to the receipt in case I want to return what I've bought), anything else is cash. I like to have a minimum of £50 on me at all times, preferably £100, I feel almost naked if I don't!

[P-Jay]

nicanary said:

BTW many small shops hate you using cards - they have to pay bank charges for every transaction, however small. This especially applies to shops in the "grey industries" like fast food. They don't like traceable transactions since it's unlikely they declare all their sales to the Inland Revenue.

Most EPOS stuff is on a % basis now rather than a fixed price per transaction so most have lifted the 'minimum spend to use a card' rules.

The truth is some places would rather avoid any sort of paper trail to hide their income from HMRC, my local Chinese Takeaway flat refuses any sort of payment that isn't cash and also is about the only one locally that doesn't appear on just-eat, I couldn't prove anything of course - but I wonder how much of the money they take makes itself known on their accounts / self-assessment.

[HTP99]

I hardly ever have cash on me and pay for almost everything on a card; reason being if I have cash I will spend it.

If I have a tenner on me and buy a Coke and a sandwich the change will be burning a hole in my pocket so I'll have to spend it, if I spend that £2.50 for a sandwich on a card then that is all I will spend, also if I leave change lying about at home then invariably either the wife or the yongest will take it.

[BrabusMog]

HTP99 said:

I hardly ever have cash on me and pay for almost everything on a card; reason being if I have cash I will spend it.

If I have a tenner on me and buy a Coke and a sandwich the change will be burning a hole in my pocket so I'll have to spend it, if I spend that £2.50 for a sandwich on a card then that is all I will spend, also if I leave change lying about at home then invariably either the wife or the yongest will take it.

I'm the exact opposite, if I have £100 on me and spend £5/£6 twice a week at lunch I think, "fk, I need to take sandwiches tomorrow!" This is because I can feel the loss in my pocket. If it's on the card it is just a case of out of sight, out of mind. At least it used to be, I'm too used to cash only now.

[Johnnytheboy]

I get a big lump of cash out at once and pay for most things with it.

I'm not skint but it is a useful way to keep an eye on my rate of spending.

[matsoc]

Still using cash on daily basis for small expenses, mainly food and drink, newspapers, magazines, car wash, etc.
I also tend to spend cash for things like cloths or shoes, I don't know why.
I don't remember having used cash recently for hotels, electronics stuff, etc.

[dondan]

Pay for the majority of things on card but like to have £10-20 on me most the time. My spending and budgeting is pretty strict so that small amount will last me a confortable week of buying the odd paper/bottle of lucozade/greggs!