Would You Walk

[teacake44]

In the last week or so I've walked out of 4 shops without getting what I've wanted. A lot of the shops are insisting on card payment, that's fine with me contactless is a great way to pay, so I no longer carry cash. However many are dictating a minimum spend of £5, each time I've gone in my spend has been around £3/£4, so have been refused, are these people off their nuts or what, considering their crying out for shoppers. Its not so long ago that they were outlawed in charging 50p per transaction on a card, so have they just found a different way round it by using the present situation. I well understand that they have running costs, including banking charges, but when pricing items, all these factors should already be included. Would you be dictated to on how much more you spend, or walk, if you don't have cash on you?

[teacake44]

Some of them seem to me making it more difficult for customers, you have shops making barricades with boxes of stock to force a one way system, all their doing in smaller sized shops are creating bottle necks of customers in one area, its getting ruddy crazy.

[ichkeria]

Banning surcharges for using cards is hardly likely to be compensated for by the money lost from being unable to process smaller card payments. The opposite in fact.
That would only work if people topped up their purchases. But who does that? Generally what happens is you find out the bad news and then you walk - because generally what else can you do.
It’s been a long time since that happened to me luckily

[teacake44]

Well in the case of the fish shop, I would think there's a percentage that would just say, ok, I'll have a fish with the chips, not me stuff em. The other shops have lots of goodies near the till that you may pick up to make the difference. The best of it is this chip shop has been closed for months, makes no sense to me unless they've found that many customers fall for it.?

[AuntPollyGrey]

Yes I would walk because I know for sure that using a debit card does not cost the retailer any money at all. Credit cards yes -usually around 50p per transaction, but debit cards no. Retailers that do this are just hawking for more business.

[teacake44]

That was my feeling hawking, its a debit card I was using. Why do they think they can tell you how much of your own money you should spend with them.

[Old_Geezer]

Small correction. Contactless is an awful way to pay. There is no feeling of spending, nor how much, until you check the damage, if you check the damage, later. Not to mention the security risks associated with money being taken from you simply by having a detectable card. Maybe bearable in an emergency, but that's about it.

[Baldric]

Darn right I would walk from the robin hoods.

[ichkeria]

I don’t understand the point about contactless payments.
You know what you are spending surely at least as much as any other form.
The general objection about card payments of course is that it’s too easy to spend money but that’s a bit different

[barry1010]

I haven't used cash for a very long time and haven't seen a minimum spend requirement for at least 3 years. I often use my card when I am buying something under £1.

[barry1010]

OG, by using a card to pay for everything I know where my money has gone and exactly how much I have spent - I can see it there on the screen when I log in to my bank account. Which I can do as often as I like from the comfort of my own home.
Not like the days when I paid in cash and couldn't remember where I'd spent a hundred pounds in a couple of days.
My contactless cards aren't detectable unless I take them out of the little card holder I carry them in.

[teacake44]

18.12 OG, how can it be difficult to know how much you spend, you get a till receipt with every transaction, including online bank statement within two days at my bank. Some say its to easy to spend on a debit card, only if your a fool I would say, or you give in to shops who are insisting on a minimum spend.

[-SharonA-]

Yes, I've seen this happening. Annoying for the customer as they look around and maybe buy something they don't need.

[teacake44]

Some older people have only just got into this contactless / debit payment, now their trying to rip them off in my view.

[tonyav]

I haven't come across this yet but if and when I do then I'd walk.

[Cloverjo]

I’d rather use a contactless card than have someone possibly peering over my shoulder to see me type in the PIN.

[Jackdaw33]

In the days before cards, when the option was cash or cheque, a friend of mine, when buying something expensive, would always ask, "Any discount for cash?" He invariably got 10% off.

[AZardoz]

JD - that worked even better when the cards arrived because the merchant got dinged a percentage. Also, the tax angle. A cash sale might not go on the books.

[barry1010]

My window cleaner prefers payment by bank transfer. No faffing for change and no bank charges - he gets charged a fee if he pays in cheques.