Cash?

[irlandaise]

I would still rather eat the 1% difference between that and my card cash back than risk carrying hundreds or thousands of dollars on me to pay for things.

Well, you don't need to carry cash. There are these things called checks. I happened to have my checkbook with me that day and could have paid for the car work with that, but I decided to go ahead with the slightly more expensive credit card purchase.

 

[bbeagle]

Just to add one more thing: Cash transactions take more time. You have to hand over the bills, cashier has to count them, enter the amount into the register, then make change. I'd much rather be behind people using a card that they can tap and skip all those steps.

Just last winter, I was in a grocery store line behind a grandmother who was to pay her $17.59 bill. It took well over 5 minutes. I was ready to take my things off the conveyor and move to a different register a few times.

After the total was rung up, the cashier told the her it's 17.59! She was hard of hearing and asked a few times, what? What? And then 10 seconds later realized that she must find a way to pay. So she picked up her purse slowly, opened it slowly, reached in and fumbled around for like 20 seconds to find her wallet inside her purse, opened it up, looked at the dollars she had and slowly gave them to the cashier… $5… $5… $5…. $1… $1…. Is that $17? Yes - it’s $17.59. Oh! Then she slowly put her wallet back in her purse. I could see that she had more money in there. Just give her $18 I thought! No… she fumbled around in her purse and found her change purse and eventually opened it up and started counting out the change.… and putting it in the palm of the cashier's hand one by one…. 25 cents… 10 cents… 1 cent… 1 cent… 1 cent… 1 cent. Is that 39 cents? The cashier said it’s actually 59 cents. You need 20 more cents. Oh… then fumbled around and gave her 10 cents… 1 cent… 1 cent… 1 cent… 1 cent… 1 cent… 1 cent… 1 cent… 1 cent… 1 cent… 1 cent… there that should do it.

she was given her receipt and took about a minute to pack everything away and put her purse in her cart.

I think a swipe of a credit card would be quicker.

 

[fla4fun]

Just last winter, I was in a grocery store line behind a grandmother who was to pay her $17.59 bill. It took well over 5 minutes. I was ready to take my things off the conveyor and move to a different register a few times.

After the total was rung up, the cashier told the her it's 17.59! She was hard of hearing and asked a few times, what? What? And then 10 seconds later realized that she must find a way to pay. So she picked up her purse slowly, opened it slowly, reached in and fumbled around for like 20 seconds to find her wallet inside her purse, opened it up, looked at the dollars she had and slowly gave them to the cashier… $5… $5… $5…. $1… $1…. Is that $17? Yes - it’s $17.59. Oh! Then she slowly put her wallet back in her purse. I could see that she had more money in there. Just give her $18 I thought! No… she fumbled around in her purse and found her change purse and eventually opened it up and started counting out the change.… and putting it in the palm of the cashier's hand one by one…. 25 cents… 10 cents… 1 cent… 1 cent… 1 cent… 1 cent. Is that 39 cents? The cashier said it’s actually 59 cents. You need 20 more cents. Oh… then fumbled around and gave her 10 cents… 1 cent… 1 cent… 1 cent… 1 cent… 1 cent… 1 cent… 1 cent… 1 cent… 1 cent… 1 cent… there that should do it.

she was given her receipt and took about a minute to pack everything away and put her purse in her cart.

I think a swipe of a credit card would be quicker.

There is a large retirement community next door to the plaza where I grocery shop. Most of the time the wallet and card will remain in the purse until the last moment just like the cash. They won’t know where to put the card or which way it should face. Invariably they press something they shouldn’t and the cashier has to clear the machine so they can start over.

My experience in our store is it depends entirely on how alert the person is, not their method of payment, that can make the difference between a short transaction or a long one. A confused or slow person will be confused or slow regardless of the method of payment. An alert person will be prepared and be efficient with their payment by either method. They recently put a few self checkout stations in our store, which should give cashless people in a hurry a faster way to exit the store.

 

[ChipnDale79]

Your only looking at the inconvenience to you but there's 2 sides to every transaction. There's a cost to handling cash which is usually far more that CC transaction fees. No end of day cash to balance, no drawers to swap, no safes to keep money in the registers.....etc. If I owned a company and could remove cash from the equation I would do it in a heartbeat, it's one less headache to deal with.

"Research from IHL Group reveals the true cost of cash for retail stores runs anywhere from 4.7% to 15.3%. That hurts, especially in retail, where margins are notoriously slender."

Our little league went cashless this past spring and it was the best decision we could have made. No getting money from the bank, no depositing money the next day, no carrying around an envelope of cash, no adding up receipts/counting cash to make sure the balances match. We used to have a police officer walk us to our cars at night. We live in a small town so highly unlikely anything would ever happen but you never know. All that aggravation went away.

The last report that I read was that 80% of all transaction in the US are credit/debit card. The 20% that used cash 90% were transactions less that $10. That basically means 90% off all purchases in the US above $10 are paid with a debit or credit card. You personally may not love it but trends rule the world and the use of cash it dwindling worldwide not just in the US. I remember reading Sweden is trying or is in the process of making the country 100% cashless.

No lie. Took the kid to a Pokémon store tonight, went to pay with a visa gift card, credit card machine was down.

Good thing I had cash, otherwise, no sale would have been made.

 

[imbelle]

It's all about having options and different risk tolerances. I pay off my credit card balance every month so I dislike charging every little expense. I don't carry more cash than I can afford to lose (losing your credit card or debit card is even more scary). Paying bills online puts your info out there for hacking on every site that you pay. A merchant who limits the consumers' options is going to lose some customers, they just have to decide if their benefit outweighs the loss.
As far as slowing down processes, the worst is waiting for people to pull up their cell phones to pay or scan in for something when they could have handed over cash or swiped a physical fob/printed bar code. Just because you can put a process on a phone doesn't mean that it's the most efficient way.

 

[New Mouse]

You don't get a discount because you pay in cash, besides gas stations.

Many restaurants started to do a surcharge for credit cards the last few years.

Most businesses have just packed the credit card fee into their price increases. You are 1000% paying a fee to use your cards whether you see that or not.

 

[Riley mrn]

While it isn't true today, it is certainly a possibility in the future.

However, the move to cashless is getting pushback from some city and state governments.

I could also see this as a big possibility. Last time I was in Disney, 2019. We didn't pay for anything with cash. Everything went to magic bands or credit cards.

 

[thanxfornoticin]

As far as slowing down processes, the worst is waiting for people to pull up their cell phones to pay or scan in for something when they could have handed over cash or swiped a physical fob/printed bar code. Just because you can put a process on a phone doesn't mean that it's the most efficient way.

I don't know. I still see folks from 'my generation' (baby boomers) at the cashier with their cash - counting dimes, nickels, and pennies out of their change purse to cover the 89 cents on their bill - and then pulling out the bills to cover the rest!! Sometimes that's way slower than the phone scans!!! There are pros and cons to cashless. There are pros and cons to cash-ONLY (which we still have in our area, because small businesses can't afford the fees for credit cards). The older gen grew up on cash and are more comfortable with it. The younger gen seems to prefer debit cards and cashless systems. When we have to exchange funds with family members - older members write (or want) personal checks or give cash. My kids do Zelle or Venmo. If Disney ever does go cashless, we'll adjust. Truth is, I hardly ever carry cash with me anymore while we're at Disney. Magic Bands, credit/debit cards take care of 99% of what we do already...... I remember the days of loading up on traveler's cheques to our Disney trips!! When those became a relic, the thought of carrying all that cash on vacation was a problem - so we absolutely moved more to the cashless tech as quickly as we could. But that's just us - not for everyone.

 

[Moliphino]

Most businesses have just packed the credit card fee into their price increases. You are 1000% paying a fee to use your cards whether you see that or not.

But in this case, so are the cash customers.

 

[PsylockeSmythe]

But it most states it's legal to add a surcharge for credit-card transactions.


I recently paid a 3% surcharge on some automobile work. Maybe there's a 3% cash back card, but that isn't what I have.

We some of the restaurants around here are doing that. They are showing two prices on the bill, one if you pay cash and another that is about 3% to 4% higher if you pay via CC/Debit card.

EDIT: I’m old though and still have cash. I will use a CC or GC but refuse to use a debit card or any payment card/app tied directly to my bank account, except an ATM card.

I'm also older and I still write checks, I pay with cash if we go out to eat and will use a CC if I don't want to pay via cash when we are out shopping. I do have a debit card and it only gets used at 2 stores.

Psy

 

[ChipnDale79]

The last report that I read was that 80% of all transaction in the US are credit/debit card. The 20% that used cash 90% were transactions less that $10. That basically means 90% off all purchases in the US above $10 are paid with a debit or credit card. You personally may not love it but trends rule the world and the use of cash it dwindling worldwide not just in the US. I remember reading Sweden is trying or is in the process of making the country 100% cashless.

for the record, probably 95% of the transactions i make, are debit. I much prefer using a form of digital payment, however, there is still a need for cash in our society and accepting them as payments. i believe in options


technology fails. I've seen countless retail locations lose their internet or credit card machines go down, in a cashless society, they're done until those systems come back up. Sure it doesnt happen often, but ask a fast casual restaurant how much money they lose when they're completely down during a lunch time rush.


Digital payment also requires all consumers to have a way to pay in a digital format, and the vast majority of people have access to that, but there are still tons of people that do not have access to one. Cash ensures payments can be made no matter if a credit card machine goes down, or someone doesn’t have a way to pay in a digital way.

 

[Brian Noble]

(losing your credit card or debit card is even more scary

Losing a credit card doesn't have to be scary, provided you report it reasonably promptly. You won't be responsible for any fraudulent charges, and don't have to pay them in the interim. Debit cards are a little more risky; there are tight timelines for reporting, and the money is out of your account until the dispute is resolved.

 

[Disney Bobby]

Your only looking at the inconvenience to you but there's 2 sides to every transaction. There's a cost to handling cash which is usually far more that CC transaction fees. No end of day cash to balance, no drawers to swap, no safes to keep money in the registers.....etc. If I owned a company and could remove cash from the equation I would do it in a heartbeat, it's one less headache to deal with.

"Research from IHL Group reveals the true cost of cash for retail stores runs anywhere from 4.7% to 15.3%. That hurts, especially in retail, where margins are notoriously slender."

Our little league went cashless this past spring and it was the best decision we could have made. No getting money from the bank, no depositing money the next day, no carrying around an envelope of cash, no adding up receipts/counting cash to make sure the balances match. We used to have a police officer walk us to our cars at night. We live in a small town so highly unlikely anything would ever happen but you never know. All that aggravation went away.

The last report that I read was that 80% of all transaction in the US are credit/debit card. The 20% that used cash 90% were transactions less that $10. That basically means 90% off all purchases in the US above $10 are paid with a debit or credit card. You personally may not love it but trends rule the world and the use of cash it dwindling worldwide not just in the US. I remember reading Sweden is trying or is in the process of making the country 100% cashless.

Well, there is another side too. Billions every year in credit card fraud and getting worse. Businesses and credit card companies don't eat that. You pay for it. And when they do try to prosecute, you pay for that too. Nobody ever used my cash from 2 states away. My cards have been hit numerous times. I have to monitor them constantly.

And I don't believe the 4.7% to 15% numbers. My gas station, as well as many others, offer a lower price for cash. Their margins are really slim, and they wouldn't do that if it was costing them money. I suspect the retailers that give those numbers want people using their own store cards. Lots of money in late fees and high interest rates for stuff people wouldn't have normally bought if they had to drop cash. Money than offsets the small fee that they pass on to consumers anyway. But I don't know. Have you seen the price drop 4.7% to 15% at places that went cashless? Because I've definitely seen the price be cheaper for using cash instead of card.

 

[Disney Bobby]

Just last winter, I was in a grocery store line behind a grandmother who was to pay her $17.59 bill. It took well over 5 minutes. I was ready to take my things off the conveyor and move to a different register a few times.

After the total was rung up, the cashier told the her it's 17.59! She was hard of hearing and asked a few times, what? What? And then 10 seconds later realized that she must find a way to pay. So she picked up her purse slowly, opened it slowly, reached in and fumbled around for like 20 seconds to find her wallet inside her purse, opened it up, looked at the dollars she had and slowly gave them to the cashier… $5… $5… $5…. $1… $1…. Is that $17? Yes - it’s $17.59. Oh! Then she slowly put her wallet back in her purse. I could see that she had more money in there. Just give her $18 I thought! No… she fumbled around in her purse and found her change purse and eventually opened it up and started counting out the change.… and putting it in the palm of the cashier's hand one by one…. 25 cents… 10 cents… 1 cent… 1 cent… 1 cent… 1 cent. Is that 39 cents? The cashier said it’s actually 59 cents. You need 20 more cents. Oh… then fumbled around and gave her 10 cents… 1 cent… 1 cent… 1 cent… 1 cent… 1 cent… 1 cent… 1 cent… 1 cent… 1 cent… 1 cent… there that should do it.

she was given her receipt and took about a minute to pack everything away and put her purse in her cart.

I think a swipe of a credit card would be quicker.

I'll see your one slow old lady experience and raise you a dozen chip read errors.

 

[Upatnoon]

Well, there is another side too. Billions every year in credit card fraud and getting worse. Businesses and credit card companies don't eat that. You pay for it. And when they do try to prosecute, you pay for that too. Nobody ever used my cash from 2 states away. My cards have been hit numerous times. I have to monitor them constantly.

And I don't believe the 4.7% to 15% numbers. My gas station, as well as many others, offer a lower price for cash. Their margins are really slim, and they wouldn't do that if it was costing them money. I suspect the retailers that give those numbers want people using their own store cards. Lots of money in late fees and high interest rates for stuff people wouldn't have normally bought if they had to drop cash. Money than offsets the small fee that they pass on to consumers anyway. But I don't know. Have you seen the price drop 4.7% to 15% at places that went cashless? Because I've definitely seen the price be cheaper for using cash instead of card.

It depends where you live. Where I live in Florida, there are only a handful of cash-only businesses -- and they are old-school places run by aging owners.

As for gas stations with discounts, there are a few independent stations that border on fraud as they show a "cash price" in tiny words on the sign and they charge 10 cents a gallon or more for using a debit card.

These stations are few and far between as they pretty much have all gone out of business, crushed by the giants like Wawa.

Now, on vacation in rural Vermont, there were many small, family-run non-chain businesses that were cash only or offered discounts for cash. If you live in a place like that, far from the corporate chains and franchises, you might see more cash.

For a theme park, getting rid of cash would be awesome. Managing currency is a pain. You have to store it, count it and track it. Your young employees may never have seen a $100 bill, let alone made change. Cashless is just much more efficient and more efficient saves money.

 

[ChipnDale79]

For a theme park, getting rid of cash would be awesome. Managing currency is a pain. You have to store it, count it and track it. Your young employees may never have seen a $100 bill, let alone made change. Cashless is just much more efficient and more efficient saves money.

local theme park is cashless. you should hear the level of complaints from parents when their kids go on some sort of field trip to it.....

 

[Starport Seven-Five]

It is interesting that I rarely see the credit card minimums/fees at large businesses. I have a hard time believing a place like Wal-Mart or Target that operates on razor thin margins is taking a hit to their revenue from credit cards.

I think it's far more likely that small businesses have not factored in the risks/costs of accepting cash. Theft, storage, time spent reconciling drawers, etc. are all real costs and it wouldn't surprise me if small businesses weren't factoring that into the calculation.

 

[Disney Bobby]

It is interesting that I rarely see the credit card minimums/fees at large businesses. I have a hard time believing a place like Wal-Mart or Target that operates on razor thin margins is taking a hit to their revenue from credit cards.

I think it's far more likely that small businesses have not factored in the risks/costs of accepting cash. Theft, storage, time spent reconciling drawers, etc. are all real costs and it wouldn't surprise me if small businesses weren't factoring that into the calculation.

Probably because the risks of accepting cash can be managed, while credit card charges are absolute. For smaller businesses, it's a way to compete with the buying power of the larger retailers. Lots of people want to do business locally, but can't justify paying more than they do from a large retailer with more buying power. Offering a cash discount helps offset for some.

But you are correct about large retailers. They just price it into the goods. Makes no sense to use cash there, because you are losing money if you don't get cc rewards.

 

[starlite_]

One reason I don't see this happening at Disney Parks at all: International Visitors.

No international visitor wants to pay via card and have a transaction fee for using the card in the USA plus the exchange rate.

 

[firefly_ris]

Cash is still a must for me even though a large amount of our monthly spending is on the credit card (points!).

But... several small businesses in my town from the mechanic to the bakery post that they charge an extra 3.5% fee for credit card use. Our local Chinese place no longer accepts credit cards, cash only.

We also go to garage sales, kids lemonade stands, cash tips where I need to have some cash on hand.

I also begin teaching finances with my kids with a cash envelope system which helps them to visualize budgeting before moving on to other forms of finance management.