One in 7 shops in UK has turned cashless in the past year, survey finds
Some 14% of small High Street traders have gone card-only in the last year, a survey suggests.
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One in 7 shops in UK has turned cashless in the past year, survey finds 9 minutes ago Share Save Kevin Peachey Cost of living correspondent Share Save High Street shops are increasingly accepting only card or phone payments, new research suggests, as traders balance security, costs and the needs of customers. Some 14% of shops have turned cashless over the last year, according to a survey of small businesses by the UK's main ATM network Link. The findings highlighted retailers efforts to avoid payment charges and tackle security concerns, despite around half of in-store purchases still being made in cash. MPs on the influential Treasury Committee last year warned of a lack of data on cash acceptance and said the government should be ready to force shops and services to accept cash to protect vulnerable people. They said there was a risk of a two-tier system, potentially pushing up prices in outlets that still accepted cash and creating a poverty premium for those who best budgeted using cash. Shops and services can currently accept whichever form of payment they want. Some countries have introduced, or plan to implement, limited but mandatory cash acceptance for some essential services. The coastal town of Hastings in East Sussex has a vibrant mix of independent and chain stores, as well as traditional seaside traders. It also has a typical mix of shops that are cash-only or card-only, with the majority happy to take either form of payment. When Alex White started Arkwhites in Hastings Old Town, selling items near their best before date at discount prices, he would only accept cash. Now, he accepts cards too. "When I started I wanted it just to be a cash store, because that's the way I've been brought up. I didn't really want to go into using a credit card machine which is an extra cost," he said. "But then over time I realised that a lot of people just use their cards and don't use cash." Elsewhere in the town, fish and chips and books are sold only for cash, while...
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