“We believe that going cashless will not only create a safer environment for our staff but also streamline operations, allowing us to serve our customers more efficiently,” a company spokesperson told 9 News.

Advertise with News of The Area today.
It’s worth it for your business.
Message us.
Phone us – (02) 4981 8882.
Email us – media@newsofthearea.com.au

According to the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC), businesses do not have to accept cash and should be clear about the types of payments they accept and the total price payable.

To gain local insight, News Of The Area asked Port Stephens community members and business owners their opinions on the trend of moving away from accepting cash.

This is what they said:

Nicki Day: “Cash is Queen.”

Jenny Waters, Boat Harbour: “I think they are silly (going cashless). Cash is still legal tender!”

Margaret Hogan, Nelson Bay: “I think it should be up to each individual as to whether they use cash or card. Using cards costs everyone more money. Convenience or choice? A golf club that I belong to only accepts card. It is a bit embarrassing sometimes when I take friends as not everyone wants to use their card. All venues should gladly accept either, no questions asked.”

Ana Hall, Corlette: “I don’t shop at or visit places that don’t accept cash.”

Melanie Peers, Soldiers Point: “If I had the choice between two businesses – card only or cash and/or card – I would choose the business that accepts cash.”

Christine Jones, Nelson Bay: “We should have the right to choose.”

Kerry Carter, Nelson Bay: “I believe the customer should have the right to choose how they pay. Having owned numerous businesses, I know what it’s like when EFTPOS was down. I recently went to buy a coffee and was told they couldn’t serve me because the Internet was down. I said I would pay cash, but they said no as the computer wasn’t working, they couldn’t take the order. I asked if they had ever heard of pen and paper.”

Jodi Denovan, Fenninghams Island: “With businesses putting merchant fees back to customers this is why I have returned to cash. If a business chooses to have card facilities, then that’s on the business, not on the customer.”

Lorna Davies, Corlette: “I absolutely detest this idea! I’m just a small operator, I cannot afford to have a card machine in my Zumba classes! A second reason is that I adore paying cash. I would rather leave the few cents I have as tips to the store holder rather than getting charged on my purchase transactions. Sure, some may not be charged to your purchase as an extra, but the storeholder definitely is paying for it. No to cashless society! I urge everyone to keep cash and have your debit cards as backups. Note: start checking your card activities, you might be surprised to see that the charges you were charged for your purchases for the week could have been a bottle of milk for your kitchen. Choose cash.”

Mark Hockey, Anna Bay: “Just back from Europe and a number of countries, especially Germany, are carrying out a silent protest against the card system because of all the surcharges (sometimes hidden) and returning to using cash more frequently than card. It was so good to see, and it felt rather nostalgic to be using cash more than card again.”

Kate Stephenson, Corlette: “Personally it wouldn’t bother me if a business was cashless because I very rarely pay cash for anything; however, I do believe that people should have the right to choose whether they pay by card or cash.”

Diane Anderson, Nelson Bay: “The physical handling of money teaches children the value of things and of saving for them. Imagine every $2 sausage bought at Bunnings being paid by card, which you are then charged card usage by the bank. Use cash often.”

Santina La Spina, Shoal Bay: “We should be allowed to make choices, and we should not be charged for using cards. Cash is my choice always.”

Melissa Preston, Shoal Bay: “Imagine the next breakdown where we can’t use ATMs to get cash out or use our cards to pay the bill-hope their cafe isn’t full! Cash is king and legal tender.”

Cherylle Stone, Soldiers Point: “I am a member of a volunteer organisation that sells merchandise. The cashless policy saves a lot of time and effort in stock management and reconciliation of sales. The computer screen is so much easier to operate than a cumbersome till attached to an eftpos machine. On the rare occasions a visitor appears who only has cash, a member of the organisation is usually willing to pay by card and accept the cash from the visitor. I acknowledge customers are paying bank fees but it’s either that or stretching the friendship of our already busy volunteers.”

Stephen Daley, Shoal Bay: “Wait for the EFTPOS terminals to go down and see the madness that it causes! Plus going cashless is a nice way to put a surcharge on your card too – just a thought.”

Marilyn Falappi, Corlette: “Give the customer an option. Unfortunately, many people may walk away from shops that do not accept cash and the end result could be another business closing their doors.”

Karin Coombe, Fingal Bay: “Kids see three-dimensional money, yet on the card they don’t gain the understanding of what the dollar is worth. I also don’t like the control tracking and tracing with cards where companies and banks chase you. There are no scams with cash except occasional counterfeit money, yet everyone has a scam a year on their cards. Cards are just revenue raising for the banks.”

Jean Brown, Salamander Bay: “Many people use cash instead of cards to help with their budgeting – if you don’t have it, you can’t spend it.”

Dianne Tomlins, Nelson Bay: “I don’t believe it would be a fair way to treat customers as we always pay a cost for the use of a debit and credit card, and this is in addition to our meal and drinks costs. I have eaten at a few restaurants that give you a small discount when you pay by cash. It encourages return business, keeps their payment costs lower and leaves you the opportunity to pass on discounted charges to your waitperson. It is a win for all those involved. Keep cash an option please.”

Simon Younger, Beatles Coffee at The Hawker Inn: “We lent out our EFTPOS machines to a local charity who have a monthly meat raffle at the Seabreeze Hotel because when they took cash-only for the tickets, they got $110 in sales. Next month with our card machine, they got over $300 in total; to give you a ratio to go on how many people (mainly younger ones) prefer to just tap and pay for things. The biggest issue for a small business is the location of a bank branch that they can use. For example Nelson Bay only has an NAB branch after both local building societies left town. PayID is very useful, has no fees and instant credit, just not that well promoted by the big four. Funny that!”

Nick Said, Naked Alley: “No to a cashless society. When systems go down, which they have, customers aren’t able to pay, and our business loses money. Customers deserve the choice and that may mean avoiding the 1.5-2.5 percent surcharge added when using your cards.”

Lyle Goodman, Nook Espresso: “I really don’t understand why a cafe or restaurant would limit their customers to only one method of payment. So much money gets eaten up in transaction fees that having cash as an option is just courteous if nothing else.”

Andrew, Authentic Thai: “It’s turmoil when the electricity is out which has happened once this year and twice last year. We can’t use the card machine and customers can’t pay. We also had the software interface fail statewide which stopped card transactions and one internet failure- all these failures come at a cost for us.”

Jimmy Shane, Shoal Bay: “Going cashless is fraught with problems including less privacy, increased opportunity for cyberattacks and hacking, dependency on technology which is twice as problematic due to poor internet connectivity especially in rural areas. People with lower income or debt often find cash easier to manage too. The banks are holding cash less as it reduces the costs of transporting it with security companies to their vaults. However, I want to be able to access the money in my bank account, my money, at any given time. Last time I wanted to make a significant purchase with cash, I had to make an appointment to withdraw it because the bank didn’t hold the amount I wanted.”

By Jacie WHITFIELD