Banks

[Moonraker]

More or less the only time I use cash now is to pay the window cleaner. Which inevitably involves handing over a £20 one week, and getting £16.50 in change which then does to pay them the next three weeks until we need to withdraw another £20

Our window cleaner is paid by BACS. He charges 30pounds* every two months.

*My keyboard has a problem. I have to use the @ key to type a ", and can't type a pound symbol at all - I just get #. If I use the # key, I get \.

[Moonraker]

Just Googled it and it appears I had "mistakenly" switched the keyboard to English (USA). By pressing Windows+Spacebar, I'm back on English (UK) and all is now as it should be!

[Fiona1986]

I have half-thought about asking me window cleaner if they could charge 4 weekly instead of fortnightly, but it might just complicate things for them. I feel like they could save themselves money by paying for some sort of online payment service and then only having to visit the houses where they don't want to use that, instead of using man-hours walking around almost all the neighbourhood two nights in a row to gather what's owed.

[Katharine]

I know I'm sounding like a one-woman crusade for keeping cash, but I've just thought of yet another reason to use it.

What happens if children go on school trips? Whenever mine visited a zoo, castle or whatever, we were told we could send a small amount of spending money with them, usually just a pound or two for them to buy a small souvenir from the gift shop. Then there are local fetes/Christmas bazaars etc. £1 for a strip of raffle tickets, 50p for a jar of home made jam etc etc. A small donation every November for a poppy?

Give me time, and I'm sure I can come up with even more reasons why I always need cash on me, and can't imagine how it could be replaced with on-line banking etc.

[Boodi 2]

Rest assured Katherine, I'm in favour of keeping cash too as I feel quite uncomfortable going out without having at least some cash in my pocket/purse...I usually carry between 20 and 50 Euro and use it for small purchases or when going to the market.

[Boatbuilder]

I know I'm sounding like a one-woman crusade for keeping cash, but I've just thought of yet another reason to use it.

What happens if children go on school trips? Whenever mine visited a zoo, castle or whatever, we were told we could send a small amount of spending money with them, usually just a pound or two for them to buy a small souvenir from the gift shop. Then there are local fetes/Christmas bazaars etc. £1 for a strip of raffle tickets, 50p for a jar of home made jam etc etc. A small donation every November for a poppy?

Give me time, and I'm sure I can come up with even more reasons why I always need cash on me, and can't imagine how it could be replaced with on-line banking etc.

I don't think anyone is arguing about doing away with cash completely, Katharine. If it does 'disappear' it will only be when there ceases to be a use for it and all avenues that used cash are covered by other means of paying for something. Technology is changing all the time and I am sure somebody will come up with a solution to cover the areas you mention before it does.

Incidentally, I make an online donation each November to the Royal British Legion, so that's one of those instances less to think about, and I receive one of these in the post.

[Katharine]

I don't think anyone is arguing about doing away with cash completely, Katharine. If it does 'disappear' it will only be when there ceases to be a use for it and all avenues that used cash are covered by other means of paying for something. Technology is changing all the time and I am sure somebody will come up with a solution to cover the areas you mention before it does.

No, maybe not arguing as such, but I get the impression that several people on here rarely have cash available and therefore can't see a need for it/think it's easier to live without it. Assuming that the people on here reflect the wider society, I'm just wondering how people get by in the situations I've mentioned before. Presumably they never give small children a bit of spending/holiday money, visit local fetes etc. Or maybe there's more technology out there than I realised, for example I didn't know that the poppy appeal could be done on-line, I've only ever seen the boxes in shops or people standing with trays outside supermarket etc.

I do know my local church has given parishioners the option of paying a standing order instead of putting money into the collection basket, and installed a card machine in the entrance for people to donate that way. As long as they still give me the option of using the basket, I've no objection to having other options available. If they go cashless then they can count me out in future.

[Hannah]

I think most people here use cash on some occasions. I would certainly use it if I wanted to give it to a younger child.

It would be interesting to hear from people who live in countries where cash has almost been abandoned like in Sweden. I hope it won't come to that in Germany. I think that cash should always be an option in daily life though I think it's reasonable if very high amounts mustn't be paid in cash like it is the case in some countries.

[Fiona1986]

I remember being given £2 for the shop at the sea life centre on a school trip, and that was back in the mid 90s. It wasn't enough to buy a penguin badge with my name on it, so my teacher gave me the 50p that I needed. I shudder to think how much cash I'd have to give Brodie now to be able to afford something in a gift shop.

Though it wouldn't surprise me now if some schools suggest that parents don't send spending money, knowing that a lot of children won't get any as their parents can't afford it. Brodie's nursery is a council one and they have a 'no cost' policy so they don't encourage costumes for Halloween/world book day etc (though they aren't banned) and they specifically asked us not to buy Christmas presents for the staff.

[Katharine]

I don't remember having to send my children with a lot of money for their school trips, and I think they usually managed to find something to buy, but of course it does depend on the venue they visit.

I do think it's a good idea for schools not to let children take any money at all.

[Jack400]

Katherine, any charity will have a facility to allow online donations. I however, agree with the rest of your post completely. I give to the RBL throughout the year not just in November as they are in need all year round. Hopefully they don't do away with cheques either...

[IceMaiden]

Interesting reading about banks. We still have a Barclays and HSBC but sadly Natwest, who I'm with, the branch shut 4 years ago. We now have a mobile Natwest bank van that comes for 30 minutes on a Tuesday morning, where you can pay in, take out, pay a bill, get some basic advice etc.

All my work is paid cash or cheque so I take it down at the end of the month, pay it in, wait a day or so then go withdraw what I want back at the post office. I have to have one account at least for the accountant but I keep the bare minimum in it as with no way to really keep an eye on it I don't want much in. I keep it the old fashioned way, I don't trust online banking. I've lost count of how many times I told them I wasn't interested, didn't trust it and my phone isn't capable of receiving pictures in a text never mind checking a bank account.

I do not want to bank online, I know many people who don't and in my opinion they should be obliged to keep it so that you can go in to actually speak to someone and physically deal with your money.

[Barnard]

You are right, Ice Maiden.
I do not now and will never trust online banking, just as I will not have a ‘smart meter’ until they become compulsory.

[Jomo]

I’ve been following this whole conversation with interest, as it seems we here in Aus were ahead of you with the bank closures etc. Rural communities and smal rural towns and villages were most impacted as the closures meant that local jobs were lost, bank buildings stood vacant (often the finest architecture in the town) and people had to travel long distances to do any face to face banking. What has made a difference is the emergence of community banks over the past 20 years or so - there was a period when Bendigo bank, formerly a building society, was opening several new branches every month, and now have branches everywhere the big banks pulled their services. Where the ‘Big Four’ banks moved out, the community banks moved in. No longer were all the decisions being made by career banking executives in the City. The community banks required a certain amount of pledged deposits from locals before they could open a branch, after that it was a smooth transition.

As for cash, we usually keep lots of it because we like to go to local farmers markets and enjoy local produce from farms no further than 50 km away, plus a whole lot of handcrafted and second-hand goods. However we do a lot of things online, pay regular bills for utilities and internet, make purchases online etc. this has been an absolute godsend during the covid lockdowns, as we also had online purchase and contactless home delivery of groceries.

[Moonraker]

I keep it the old fashioned way, I don't trust online banking.

That reminds me of the days when people stopped being paid in cash. Many then said, "I don't trust the banks," preferring to keep their money in a biscuit tin or under the mattress.

Incidentally, this isn't a criticism aimed at you, it just triggered a memory!