Cash will always be king in a post-COVID world

Cash will always be an important way to pay despite many Australians shifting away from using notes and coins during the pandemic, Sophie Elsworth argues.

Seeing signs emblazoned on my local cafe shop front saying “we accept cash” raised my eyebrows.

Why on earth would my local barista have to spell it out to customers that he still accepts this legal tender?

“People think we don’t accept cash and we do,” the barista said.

“Customers are worried about using notes and coins because of the germs, so we had to put the sign up letting them know it’s OK to pay this way.”

Really?

We need reminding we can still hand over a trusty note or a bunch of coins to settle the tab.

While businesses are permitted to knock back our trusty notes and coins the catch is they have to provide a way to pay that doesn’t incur any fees.

I’ve always been a stickler for cash, well before the pandemic struck.

It’s a better way to manage your money.

You feel the pain when the notes leave your wallet as opposed to tapping into oblivion at the checkout without realising exactly how much money was just sucked out of your bank account.

There’s no doubt during the pandemic many of us have become germaphobes, instilled into us if we touch surfaces we could be infected with COVID-19.

I even went to a store and handed the shop assistant a $100 note only to have it knocked back, she told me to pay by card with a sign saying “card is preferred”.

This is despite her touching all the items I purchased.

But as we wriggle our way out of the pandemic, I’m hoping important behaviours we had pre-pandemic don’t suddenly disappear including paying with cash.

The other day I had a beauty appointment and when it came to paying I realised I’d left my purse at home.

Thanks to those of us who have embraced technology I was able to use my iPhone – using a smartphone or smartwatch can certainly come in handy, but I’ve been caught out at the checkout many times because the digital world let consumers down.

It’s left me wandering down to the nearest ATM and having to withdraw cash to pay.

I’ve even been left standing at the supermarket checkout when the payment terminals have packed it in.

Then I’ve had to ditch 40 minutes of shopping I’d just carefully selected because I couldn’t pay.

Of course there’s those awkward moments too when you go to settle a restaurant bill with your mates only to have one tightwad sitting there who doesn’t want to pay their fair share.

I always have a handful of notes when going out, it’s easier to divvy up the bill if you can throw what you owe on the table.

There’s no doubt the taxman would love us to go completely cashless but I think there’s good reason to say cash is still king.

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@sophieelsworth

Originally published as Cash will always be king in a post-COVID world