High street chains and restaurants across the UK are facing mounting criticism for refusing to accept cash payments, despite a significant rise in consumers turning to notes and coins.
Major brands including Gail’s bakery, Itsu and Zizzi have implemented cashless policies, sparking calls for new legislation as Britons believe they are losing “a fundamental right”.
The controversy comes as cash usage has reached a four-year high, with 1.5 million adults now using cash for daily spending.
Gail’s bakery, which operates more than 150 stores, claims going cashless offers “environmental benefits” by eliminating cash collection and delivery.
Businesses are under fire for refusing to accept cash payments
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Itsu, which promotes “affordable, nutritious food”, implemented cashless payments after a successful trial. Zizzi says it only accepts card and contactless payments to provide the “smoothest and fastest” payment experience.
Pret a Manger has taken a different approach, piloting cashless outlets but still accepting cash in most of its 490 UK shops after deciding to prioritise customer choice.
Despite a decade-long decline in cash payments, the cost of living crisis has reversed this trend. Cash accounted for six billion payments in 2023, according to UK Finance.
The number of people primarily using cash rose from about 900,000 in 2022 to 1.5 million in 2023. Cash remains the second most frequently used payment method in the UK after debit cards.
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While overall cash usage has fallen from over half of payments in 2009 to about 12 per cent in 2023, millions still rely on physical currency.
Ron Delnevo, the chair of the Payment Choice Alliance, described retailers rejecting cash as “completely unacceptable”.
“The vast majority of the public want cash to be honoured as a payment,” he said. “These businesses are letting down the public.”
The alliance campaigns for the long-term future of cash services and wants new laws requiring retailers to accept cash.
Cash access has become a growing concern in recent years
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A YouGov survey conducted in June 2023 revealed that 71 per cent of British adults would support a legal requirement for businesses to accept cash.
Labour MP Kate Osborne, who has signed the early day motion, said: “It is a fundamental right that people should be able to use cash as a legal tender.”
“When you are trying to budget, particularly if you are on a low income, cash is a simple way of doing it,” Osbourne added.
She highlighted concerns for constituents who are digitally excluded or choose not to use electronic banking, notably pensioners.
“I’ve been on trains before and the system has gone down and they can’t take cash. You could be on a train for three or four hours, and you can’t even buy a cup of tea.”
The Treasury select committee is expected to report shortly on its inquiry into whether there is any need to regulate cash acceptance.
An early day motion tabled in Parliament last month calls for the government to implement legislation requiring all UK businesses to accept cash.
The motion highlights concerns about the “rapidly increasing trend” of businesses, local authorities and leisure facilities refusing cash payments.
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Ron Delnevo, chair of the Payment Choice Alliance, has slammed the push towards a cashless society
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Car parks, train buffets and leisure centres are among the services that have gone cashless. Ministers have stated they have no plans to mandate cash acceptance.
May Fairweather, a financial coach and executive director at Talk About Money, said the financial industry prefers “frictionless” purchases because they make spending easier.
“Cash adds friction, and that can be a good thing,” she said. “It gives people time to think and time to make proper decisions.”
She noted that physical notes and coins remind people that money is “finite”. A system known as “cash stuffing” – using envelopes for different spending categories – has gained millions of views on TikTok.
The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) says about 3 million people continue to rely on cash, despite the rise in digital payments.
Last September, the FCA introduced rules requiring banks and building societies to ensure reasonable access to cash services. A Treasury spokesperson said: “We recognise that cash continues to be used by millions across the UK.
“While we have no plans to mandate cash acceptance, individual businesses can decide which payment methods they accept.”