UK customers have issues completing card payments. Source: Shutterstock.com

There have been widespread reports of people up and down the UK struggling to complete their transactions on card.

These issues have taken place at essential locations such as supermarkets and petrol stations.

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Sainsbury’s is one of the places which has been having these problems, and while checking on X to see if the supermarket chain had posted any sort of message I could not see one from this recent event.

But there was one from March this year. This raises the question of how often will events like this occur. And will shoppers now always have the anxiety of needing to have cash ready and nearby just in case of emergency? And does this reduce the confidence in putting faith in digital wallets without carrying a physical card?

A cashless society is a bad idea?

Andrew Martin, CEO and Founder of SMEB, said: “Today’s payment outages shine a fresh light on the continued importance of cash and why the march to a cashless society is a bad idea. We’re seeing a growing number of businesses across the UK label themselves as ‘cashless’ venues and it makes you wonder how they must cope when technical glitches like this happen, and the frustration it must cause their customers. 

“Fortunately, millions of customers and businesses still recognise the benefits of cash. Unfortunately getting your hands on it is not as easy as it used to be. The UK has lost 6000 bank branches since 2015, meaning that access to crucial financial services, such as the ability to withdraw and deposit cash at the end of the day, is no longer possible in many areas. 

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“Now that the UK has chosen its new government, we need to see them spring into action to solve the UK’s banking deserts. Every day that we wait, local businesses will suffer.”