Over half of those surveyed (55%) think that the UK is being pushed to go cashless with nearly 30% of respondents having already been refused when trying to pay with cash

New research from Cardtronics, the UK’s largest ATM provider, finds that over 55% of over 300,000 people participating in our poll believe they are being forced to go cashless against their will. 

Additionally, nearly 60% of those surveyed agreed that if local shops stopped taking cash then shopping would be difficult, highlighting how cash is still very heavily relied on by many people. 

According to consumer group Which?, 2,766 banks have been axed over the last five years, limiting access to cash for people in certain areas and restricting the availability of basic  banking services. Nearly half of respondents 44% of respondents said they would deposit cash at an ATM if the option was available to them. 

Cardtronics research also found that the reduction in the number of local ATMs available is pushing people to go cashless, with 74% of respondents unwilling to walk 1km to their nearest working cash machine. Despite the government initiative to offer cashback without purchase to help solve the access to cash problem, 57% of respondents said they would not get cashback at a local shop if an ATM was unavailable. 

Cardtronics recently submitted a letter to the Treasury to express concern at the Access to Cash consultation which aims to address the cash crisis caused by the reduction of ATMs on our high streets. The overall number of free-to-use ATMs across the UK has fallen by 23% since 2018, with some areas losing as much as half of their ATMs.

Marc Terry, International Managing Director at Cardtronics, said:

“Our survey demonstrates the real concerns consumers have over access to cash and the reduction in cash acceptance across the UK. Cardtronics is calling on the government to protect the UK’s ATM network and ensure that all retailers accept cash in-store. Action is needed now so that the underbanked are not left behind and everyone retains the right to choose how they pay. The anti-cash lobby has tried hard to use the pandemic to promote other forms of payments and extinguish cash use. But the fact remains that cash is still the preferred payment method for many, and we need government action to protect it before it’s too late.”