Post Office urges retailers to keep cash payment options open for customers

Nearly a third (29%) of people have been unable to pay at a store checkout in the past year because a retailer did not accept a payment method they could use, a survey has found.

Among those affected, more than one in five (21%) said the retailer did not accept cash.

The Post Office, which commissioned the research, warned of a potential resilience gap if digital payments fail.

While 83% of businesses surveyed had a written or agreed contingency plan, 90% did not include accepting cash as a back-up.

The UK retailers surveyed reported an average of three payment disruptions in the last year.

The Post Office said that, to support business resilience, it has published guidance to help retailers plan for payment disruptions.

Ben Hunter Woollard, head of banking at the Post Office, said: “A payment outage can disrupt trading in seconds, resulting in customers being turned away and sales lost.

“Cash has helped many retailers continue trading during recent disruptions, but it is rarely included in formal contingency plans.

“With the Government encouraging households to keep some cash available for emergencies, retailers should also consider how they will keep serving customers if digital payments go down in emergencies.

“If cash usage is being encouraged, so should its acceptance.”

There have been signs of households stocking up on essentials following the launch of the Government’s Be Ready campaign.

On Tuesday, tinned tuna maker Princes revealed a surge in demand for canned food.

ATM and cash access network Link also said last week was the first time this year that the overall value of cash machine withdrawals increased annually.

Link said it is continuing to see people withdraw relatively big average amounts from ATMs, in what could be a sign of some people following Government advice to stay prepared in an emergency.

It said, based on historical trends, it is seeing more people take out an extra bit of cash when they do visit an ATM, with averages approaching £110.

Ed Woodall, chief executive of the Association of Convenience Stores, said: “Cash remains an important payment method for customers in convenience stores, with 99% of convenience retailers accepting cash.

“When people lose access to other payment methods through outages or issues with networks, cash is a crucial safety net that allows businesses to continue trading and serving their communities.”

Censuswide surveyed 2,000 people across the UK and 500 high street retailers in October for the Post Office.