Over 88% of people believe the move towards a cashless society will leave behind a significant cohort of Irish people, according to recent research undertaken by the Dublin Mint Office.
The Dublin Mint Office poll questioned 562 people on whether they believed that some groups in society would be excluded by the move towards cashless transactions.
Vulnerable Groups
The elderly, homeless, small businesses, teenagers and children where all cited as vulnerable groups in their opinion.
A further 68% of those surveyed said they would not be in favour of moving away from notes and coins.
“We share the concern that certain members of society may be excluded if cashless transactions replace the use of notes and coins for payments," said Kathy Clarke, spokesperson for the Dublin Mint Office.
"While technological developments give rise to ‘cashless only’ merchants and the overall growing use of contactless methods of payments, it is worth noting how the majority of surveyed participants are not in favour of a cashless society,” she said.
Convenience
At the top of the poll was Leinster who was the most welcoming of the move of physical notes and coins.
Connaught ranked in second place with 29%, followed by Ulster with 25%.
The province most against the change was Munster, with just 23% open to a cashless society.
However, despite the resistance, 66% of people find cashless payment methods more convenient then notes and coins.
Although 55% of those surveyed said that they believe cashless payments are less secure than using the physical currency.
Some participants said that they preferred cash payments as there are no banking fees and that it makes it easier to leave a tip.
Convenience was the main reason 43% preferred using a card or digital payments, other reasons included preferring not to carry cash for security reasons and it being easier to keep track of spending.
© 2019 Checkout – your source for the latest Irish retail news. Article by Helen Galgey. Clicksign-up to subscribe to Checkout.
