Do You Support A Cashless Society?

Gloria Jeans is starting to drop cash, I've noticed other shops have 'card only' signs.

https://www.9news.com.au/national/gloria-jeans-cafes-cashles…

As someone who pretty much exclusively pays card/PayPal/Bpay for stuff in 2024 I'm interested to hear on if OzBargain would support a 100% cashless society.

I'll try to be balanced. The three main argument against a cashless society are;

  1. Card surcharges the only way for businesses/consumers to 100% avoid this is via paying cash.
  2. Many 'businesses' (cough) tradies tend to do the side cash jobs giving a decent discount, anyone who has owned a house for longer then a few years would have experience with this.
  3. Some people mostly older generation just like paying in cash or do not trust the banks/government etc to use card.

The arguments for cashless are obvious it is quicker, more efficient, better for the environment, safer for businesses and consumers etc.

Do you support a cashless society?

My answer is 100% support but the government bank account guarantee needs to be set an unlimited level or much higher level (opposed to the 250k it is at now) as you essentially have no choice but to keep your money in the banks - for the record my bank account is sitting on $112 at time of posting but others might be richer then I.

Poll Options expired

  • 377
    Yes, I support a cashless society.
  • 920
    No, I do not support a cashless society.

Comments

  • +32

    Are they still going to charge the extra for CC? If so, that's technically illegal. Bob Katter is not gonna be happy.

      • +90

        Bollocks, no one should need to sign up to a specific card just to get around the illegal action of cafes. Frankly, we're slowly turning into USA with the tipping culture being forced on us by the QR code apps too.

        • +4

          Wwhooooaaa i support cashless not tipping thats a completely different arguement

          I agree u shouldnt have to sign up to anything and no is saying you have too

    • +5

      My local cafe does not accept cash, accepts CC for the payments with surcharges added at the time of payment but smartly offers the option of BPAY (with 3 days clearance required) to pay for your coffee or sandwich. It does mean if you want to head into the store and buy and pay for something; they are technically probably offering the advertised price (if you transferred them via BPAY 3 days ago) otherwise you are slugged the surcharges.

      What a time to be alive!

      • +5

        they are technically probably offering the advertised price (if you transferred them via BPAY 3 days ago) otherwise you are slugged the surcharges.

        Debatable if they don't want to accept BPay if it takes time. You should take them up on the offer to pay via BPay and see what they say.

      • +3

        Certain restaurants offer PayID if people don't pay with cash. I haven't seen any restaurants/cafe that offer BPAY …

      • +23

        I would transfer the $5.50 then wait in front of the counter for 3 days just to show them who’s boss.

        • +1

          Living up to your username but I love it

      • +2

        Just stop going there. So many cafes around willing to accept cash

    • +11

      In Europe/UK and some states in the USA, passing on cc fees/surcharges is banned, I think if Australia is committed to being cashless they need to do the same. However, I'm sure merchants that don't charge a fee build it into the cost of doing business and their end product price.

      • +4

        Okay, 5% to 10% discount then for cash payment ;-) Not joking, I have seen them.

      • +4

        As it used to be before they changed the rules to allow passing on of fees.

        It's a running cost, work it in to your price. Offer a cash discount if you want.

        • A cash discount is literally the same thing, just changes how you advertise the price.

    • -1

      I really just want to give a live example of what I have seen from a few businesses we have talked to recently:

      Normally an eftpos merchant fee is:

      A bank charge rate normally 0.4-1.5% + the mastercard/visa+others fees 'interchange' which is 0.3%-0.9%

      So if you're using card, the business has no choice but to accept these fees, for smaller merchants, they pay 3-4 times more than say a strategic merchant.

      What has happened recently is NAB for example has increased the merchant rate from 0.4% to 0.8%, a doubling of the bank fees.

      With a lot of home loan owners being pushed onto premium point cards, the cost to the business will be in excess of 2% per transaction as it is variable on the type of card used.

      You know where this heads when card becomes the only option.

      When most businesses make 5-15% profit of turnover, and you're paying 15-40% of your profits towards bank fees, it is a lot.

      Calculation

      Business turnover $1 million, net profit $100K.

      Bank transaction fees are 2% on turnover = $20k.

      20% of a businesses profit basically goes towards merchant fees.

      Just stating the facts. Somebody pays for this regardless.

      • +1

        Merchants don't care about customer hardship. Can I pay 2% less for my coffee because I didn't get a raise? Of course not. Why should customers care about the merchant if they are running a business with a razor thin margin?

        All customers want is to pay what is stated on the menu/listing, without an unpredictable compulsory fee tacked on at the last step. Till this is stamped out at a regulatory level, we will continue to hear sob stories from businesses.

        • The fee should be clearly stated at the checkout process. It is annoying when some cafes do it without a clear sign.

          This is why ALDI have huge signs handing from the ceiling stating it.

          Customers don't need to care at all, the business eventually decides to either close down or raise prices. Then customers start complaining about why things are so expensive. Every cost, gets passed down by an order of scale.

      • This is extremely cherrypicked lol. There are so many variables.

        People would be much more forgiving if the business just absorbed the cost and increased prices accordingly, but they'd rather advertise a lower price (which is actually just an inflated price anyway these days) and slug their customers with 2% on top at the time of payment.

        Let's not forget the real cost of cash handling is also upwards of 5% (depending on turnover) when you factor in bank runs, staff time (wages), security arrangements and bank fees as well. But businesses are happy to accept cash without a surcharge, and have been forever (assuming no tax avoidance here).

        I think if a business refuses to take cash, they should not be able to charge a fee to cover the payment costs. It's effectively a hidden cost to all purchases, the advertised price is not ever available in that case.

        • The 2% ontop is a regulatory action based on the actual predicted cost of the charging, it's impossible for the business to know exactly how much a card payment will cost the business as a savings card might cost them 20 cents and a platinum card transaction might cost $5 depending on the sale.

          I agree with a slapping on a higher cost overall, but it penalises the customers who don't use expensive payment methods.

          The 5% cost of cash has been thrown around for ages, I think that might be funded by MC/visa

          I agree with not being able to charge a fee if that is their only payment option.

  • +6

    $113 here

    • +4

      look at the Mr money bags here

      • I know right? mines sitting at $0.01. Gotta maximise that redraw :)

  • +48

    All well and good until there is some internet/server outage….

    • +11

      That’s happened to me at least 4 times this year so far, 3 at the servo and once at Coles. Each time I had backup cash in my wallet whilst all the perma-chilldren were throwing a tantrum at the staff like it was their fault.

      • +18

        Doesn't help if the entire EFTPOS, Visa or MasterCard system goes down.

        • +2

          How often has EFTPOS, Visa and MasterCard all gone down at the same time? (Real question, not arguing).

          • +11

            @noz: Well when they operate via 4G or with the recent CrowdStrike outage

            • @HamBoi69: CrowdStrike outage did not affect EFTPOS, only the Windows-based checkouts. ALDI was not affected during the CrowdStrike outage, because they used some old school checkouts and could pay with CC.

              • @pformag: …and if checkout POS is not working, chances are you cannot pay with cash either

          • +3

            @noz: It doesn't have to be the individual networks going down but rather the service provider (eg Westpac, ANZ, CBA, NAB, Tyro, Square, etc) and that will stop any payments from happening regardless of which type of card it is.

            • @Trance N Dance: That's a fair point

            • +1

              @Trance N Dance: And let's not forget that there are so many dependencies in the things we use. Your service provider may be using services from other service providers and single one of them going down could kill all their services as well.

          • +1

            @noz: Optus mobile and Internet went down for a whole business day a few months back.

            Having cash as a backup is wise. Otherwise society is very fragile.

          • @noz: SA had a large scale power outage a few years back that knocked out multiple internet exchanges, cards didn't work then for a few days in some places.

    • +8

      I would imagine many shops are still reliant on IT infrastructure regardless of cash.

      • Local infra is powered by generators quite easily, it's when things like internet exchanges or mobile networks go down that it really hits the fan

    • -5

      Been cashless for years and literally never been affected by it. Yes, temporarily but that’s it.

      • +4

        "literally never been affected by it", then proceeds to say "Yes, temporarily but that’s it."

        • -3

          Temporary as compared to couldn’t perform the transaction.

          Sorry I forgot where I’m posting and how most like to jump down peoples throats.

    • +4

      Most major places won’t accept cash either when that goes down.

      • Read someone's comment from next page:

        Cloudy: Went to woolies yesterday and signs were up saying cash only as they’re having technical issues. The shop was half empty.

        Read kabammi comment below …

        kabammi: That happened 13th Feb this year in Melbourne when half the city was knocked out, power, mobile, all servos.. 530,000 homes and businesses, mobile towers, outwithout power.. I went to a bunnings and with no power, they were clack clacking old style credit cards using the carbon paper transfer stuff from yesteryear. It was weird, you needed your phone to take a photo of the price tag on the Bunnos shelf.. show it to the people at the front, and then they'd take your cash or clack clack a credit card. People with phones for payment were phucked. Hand written receipts were being given out. If you wanted to use the clack clack thing, there was a massive queue. Cash was king.

        • I was there to get a jerry can to pick up petrol for the generator on the way home, except all the servos were shut (every one between Oakleigh and Belgrave). Nuts.

          • -1

            @Baysew: I don't have car or generator. So, I don't need those servos. But everyone need groceries at least from Coles/Wollies/Aldi or Asian supermarkets.

            • +1

              @neoleo: Cash is of no help if the business is shut.

              • @Baysew: At least Coles/Wollies/Aldi and Asian supermarkets will still open to accept cash only when there is card payment problem or even electricity problem.

                Pharmacies will still open too.

                • @neoleo: Banks won't be.

                  • @Baysew: Essential Businesses:
                    * Supermarkets and grocery stores
                    * Medical centers
                    * Pharmacies
                    * Petrol stations
                    * Waste industry
                    * Banks
                    * News agencies
                    * Post offices
                    * Bottle shops

                    Remember the policy during pandemic? These businesses will stay open and accept cash …

                    Banks can use generator to keep electricity on if there is electricity problem.

    • That happened 13th Feb this year in Melbourne when half the city was knocked out, power, mobile, all servos.. 530,000 homes and businesses, mobile towers, outwithout power.. I went to a bunnings and with no power, they were clack clacking old style credit cards using the carbon paper transfer stuff from yesteryear.

      It was weird, you needed your phone to take a photo of the price tag on the Bunnos shelf.. show it to the people at the front, and then they'd take your cash or clack clack a credit card. People with phones for payment were phucked. Hand written receipts were being given out.

      If you wanted to use the clack clack thing, there was a massive queue. Cash was king.

      I was there to get a jerry can to pick up petrol for the generator on the way home, except all the servos were shut (every one between Oakleigh and Belgrave). Nuts.

    • +1

      This is Australia… That almost never…
      Oh wait

  • +25

    Absolutely not. And I am noticing the changes too. Often Woolworths only has one or two cash self checkouts. Others are marked cash and card, but are out of order all the time. Very frustrating waiting in line and people queing up behind you wondering why you are waiting when there are empty checkouts. I like using cash and don't want endless transactions on my bank account.

    • Often Woolworths only has one or two cash self checkouts

      And they are always being used by people who should not be using self-serve.

      • +1

        Why?

    • Cash self checkouts breakdown all the time, lots of moving parts inside, places for notes and coins to get jammed, depending on company policy probably aren't allowed to open it while the store is open and I am aware of a couple of retailers where staff don't even have the key to open those components.

      It's not some conspiracy, self checkouts are a massive pain in the butt for the retailer and ones that handle cash are prone to problems that card only machines are not.

      • +5

        I was impressed how well cash self checkouts work in Japan. Everywhere: public transport, grocery stores, restaurants. Thier technology must be miles ahead.

        • +3

          Haven't you seen that video when someone in Japan out money in, something went wrong, little door opened up and a guy inside sick his hand out with the correct change. That's their tech.

          • @tessel: Yes but the Japanese would be the type of people who would probably service the self service payment mechanisms every day too and clear out any debris because they take a lot of pride in their work, so would probably run much smoother.

      • i normally use manned checkouts but there was ques at both open checkouts, had a $50 note jamb in the coles self serve checkout yesterday & the coles lady took the machine apart & put it through herself it jammed again so she just swapped over the note & that fixed it, it only took a couple of minutes to rectify the problem.

  • +3

    Maybe cashless is viable when it's all on the blockchain and decentralised so you're not relying on/trusting the banks?

    Opens can of worms

    • +15

      No way the establishment allows anything to stay unregulated for long enough

      • +7

        Yep, it's known as Central Bank Digital Currencies and they will be coming to replace cash soon enough …

        Then the government can track all your money, knows every cent you get and spend, can assign you carbon limits and know exactly how much to tax you ;)

        • +3

          I know and thats partly to do with my reservations against a digital only transactional society, libs will call me a conspiracy theorist for it but so be it.

          • -2

            @Gervais fanboy:

            libs

            Poor gervais, will he ever be free of persecution from the "libs"

            Especially the sort of hippie libertarian libs who insist on the government tracking everyone's spending habits

            • -3

              @Crow K:

              “libs”

              But isn’t it amazing though? I just say it and one just magically turns up. Brilliant stuff.

              • -1

                @Gervais fanboy:

                (gets called out for using the lib term continuously and generically without understanding what it means)

                "Oh look, a lib showed up"

                I don't need you to prove my points for me, gervais. Why don't you treat yourself to learning a new word? Maybe an Australian one this time?

                • -2

                  @Crow K: Didn’t know Australian was a language now?
                  Btw thanks for the neg, lib boy.

                  • -4

                    @Gervais fanboy: (ignoring whatever incoherent point he was trying to make about "Australian words can't exist because Australian isn't a language" because ????)

                    Which do you think is more pathetic right now, doubling down on "lib" obsession or pissing and moaning about negs?

                    Just like the rest of your life, there isn't an answer you can give that will make you look good.

                    • -3

                      @Crow K:

                      moaning

                      Where, When, How?

                      Look at you, soo mad. Go ahead, neg away. It doesn’t bother me at all but it does help me rationalise the impression I have of you, lib boy.
                      If all of this is bothering you soo much, come do something about it rather than always lying and attacking me online.

                      ignoring whatever incoherent point he was trying to make about "Australian words can't exist because Australian isn't a language" because ????)

                      Damn, you edited your comment to add another paragraph, so mad indeed.
                      Anyways, I don’t even know what you are trying to imply with this one, must be because you are speaking ‘Australian’ again. Try English with the next one.

                      • -1

                        @Gervais fanboy:

                        Where, When, How?

                        Look at you, soo mad. Go ahead, neg away. It doesn’t bother me at all but it does help me rationalise the impression I have of you, lib boy.
                        If all of this is bothering you soo much, come do something about it rather than always lying and attacking me online.

                        Quoting this in full so it doesn't get eaten by the edit monster.

                        It's always 'libs" or "why are you lying" with you.
                        These are weird hills to die on.

                        • -3

                          @Crow K: You are soo sure of yourself, aren’t you?
                          You think this is a competition where if you tell me that I said something weird, then I am wrong and you are soo right. You win🏆.
                          You are just a child lol and I just realised that too.

                          Also, I love how you have stopped negging the rest of my comments since I correctly called you out on the one above, so it did bother you.
                          I just influenced your sneaky behaviour in real time. Typical lib. If you were man enough and stood your ground, you would have negged all of my comments where I called you a lib, lib but na, you stopped. Weak.

                          • @Gervais fanboy:

                            @CrowReally: You are soo sure of yourself, aren’t you?
                            You think this is a competition where if you tell me that I said something weird, then I am wrong and you are soo right. You win🏆.
                            You are just a child lol and I just realised that too.

                            Also, I love how you have stopped negging the rest of my comments since I correctly called you out on the one above, so it did bother you.
                            I just influenced your sneaky behaviour in real time. Typical lib. If you were man enough and stood your ground, you would have negged all of my comments where I called you a lib, lib but na, you stopped. Weak

                            You spend half your time accusing people of being frightened little keyboard warriors and then other half calling people out for not being "man enough" to use up all their negs?

                            It's a weird hill to die on, dude. You were marginally less embarrassing when you were pissing and moaning about negs, but to have the grand 4D chess reveal be that you're actually perpetually online isn't the shock you clearly think it is.

                            • -3

                              @Crow K:

                              You spend half your time accusing peop

                              Wrong ❌
                              100% of times I am either casting an opinion or trying to have a civil discussion. It’s then that triggered libs like yourself who can’t stomach an opposing worldview that personally attack me, it’s only then that I chose to state what I am observing right infront of me.
                              Also, you exaggerate to make your points.

                              other half calling people out for not being "man enough" to use up all their negs?

                              Wrong again ❌
                              Literally the first time I have ever said it to anyone, you.
                              Disingenuous people use constant exaggerations to make their points, textbook ‘dying on the hill’ kinda behaviour. How ironic lol

                              moaning

                              Where, When, How?

                              perpetually online

                              I consistently reply to you in this 60 minute time window = I am perpetually online?
                              You lie and exaggerate so much that it’s just like completely seeped into your every talking point. I hope you can overcome it for yourself and for the people around you. See ya, libby.

        • So no need to lodge a tax return?

      • +2

        more to the point WHY would you want it unregulated. regulation is often a pain in the arse, but banking and money is exactly where you want it regulated or you will quickly find the scum of the earth WILL take control and exploit it for all its worth, which is exactly what happens with bitcoin et al already.

    • Im not against block chain it is a good idea is someone cab get it to work unlike the ASX which wasted 100s of millions and failed

    • +8

      I don't want my transactions visible to everyone forever. Blockchain= fail

      • +6

        Not all blockchains are the same. Certain blockchains can be more privacy friendly.

      • +1

        Monero is your friend

    • +4

      Yes, I sure prefer trusting an anonymous person who created it all to take care of my money. Especially in a blockchain that's easy to hack, can be permanently lost if I lose some phrase, has no tech support, and to top it all off everyone can see every single thing I purchase for eternity and I have no privacy.

      People act like decentralised is the best way forward, but there's a lot of good reasons why centralised is actually very useful, especially if you're thinking long-term security for your money.

      • You already have no privacy. and there are tools that can anonymise your transactions, as well as privacy focused coins you can dip in and out of at your leisure like monero. As for taking care of your money, It should be up to all of us to handle our own money, but you don't have to, you can use third party custodians if you're scared of progress.

  • +6

    absolutely not, how to fast track dystopia 101

    • Bloody Nandos great chicken though!

      • yeah, of all the chicken places this is tops!

    • +11

      Not sure if your comment is satire or not? I can pull out my phone and have it tapped on the screen and paid for in under 5 seconds. Watching someone paying by cash they either spend a minimum 15 seconds trying to find the exact change, or they whip out a $50 in 5 seconds and then wait another 15 seconds for the cashier to tap it in on the screen and pull out the change.

      • -1

        I still remember when iphone cannot be used to pay when it's locked. It took quite some time for a girl to pay with her iphone because her iphone was locked. That made me laugh, lol.

        Now android users need to unlock their phone to pay … Maybe previously thieves stole android phones (locked with NFC on) to pay groceries etc. that made Google change their decision …

        • Google Pay doesn't need a PIN (for purchases, for some reason refunds still do), so unlocking is the only security.

      • Yeah, then add in time going to the ATM every now and again. I don't mind cash, but it certainly doesn't win from a speed or convenience aspect.

    • @sandman20104159 - Cash or cashless it doesn’t matter, either method is slow when so many people/customers in society that use registers are slow, dawdle, and waddle, like they’re taking a Sunday stroll. As a customer who has to wait for others ahead of me, it’s one of on my biggest pet peeves just how slow many people are at registers.

    • +1

      I'm the opposite.
      Phone is far easier than fumbling around in my wallet. If I upgrade my watch, payment will be as fast as it could possibly get.
      I won't shop anywhere that won't accept a creditcard.

      I was just in Japan where I had to use cash in many places, and despite the fantastic technology, it was still a pain accumulating coins.

      • id rather cash then card/phones.on the weekend, i had to pay via stupid card and guess what… 24c for using a debit card… not even tap and pay…a god damn debit with a pin number out of a debit account… still stung with a fee. that is what i hate the most about that system.

  • +1

    I'm very much for a cashless society. The cc fees are annoying.

    It's too tempting though when my local restaurant offers me a 5% discount if I pay cash, or a 1.5-2% fee for paying by cc. The variation of 6-7% is enough for me to find cash just for eating there!

    • +2

      I'm very much for a cashless society. The cc fees are annoying.

      Okie dokie then.

      But what on earth is this?

      It's too tempting though when my local restaurant offers me a 5% discount if I pay cash, or a 1.5-2% fee for paying by cc. The variation of 6-7% is enough for me to find cash just for eating there!

      That wouldn’t exist in a cashless society…
      But you want cashless despite it regularly incurring fees?

      • +1

        I meant to say I prefer the cashless BUT the fees are annoying. I'm willing to pay it for the convenience however.

        The only time I do pay cash is because there is a big enuff discount for me to do so at one of my local restaurants. Obviously that's not going to happen everywhere and if it were cashless, then that sort of thing wouldn't exist.

      • -1

        It wasn't that hard to understand. People on the internet always seem to obsess over technical details of a post when the conversational tone is obvious. Reeks of desperation to win a 'gotcha'.

    • Is the restaurant Korean by any chance?

      I've only seen it at Korean restaurants in both Sydney and Melb.

      • 10% discount on certain day and 7% discount on other days in a Thai restaurant in Sydney City. Huge portion of certain meals like for 2 people with the price of 1 meal.

        • Correction.

          Huge portion of certain meals like for 2 people with the price of 0.9 meal (cash).

Login or Join to leave a comment