Almost two thirds of Brits now using contactless payments as the number of payments doubles in one year
The way we pay for our purchases is changing.
Debit card payments are now proving more popular with UK consumers than cash transactions, according to the latest UK Payment Markets report.
At the end of 2017, 13.2 billion debit card payments were made in the UK compared to 13.1 billion cash payments.
It’s the first time card payments have overtaken cash as the most frequent way to pay, with the shift being attributed to new technology, payment innovation and changing consumer habits.
The report says the popularity of contactless payments, online shopping and smartphones are having a significant effect on how we manage our money and pay for things.
The research, from trade association UK Finance, shows the switch beats previous forecasts of debit cards overtaking cash by one year. In comparison, cash payments were down 15 per cent year-on-year.
The ability to use debit cards for lower-value payments without needing to key in a pin number is a major driver in the growth in debit card use among UK consumers, the report finds. In total, across both debit and credit cards, the number of contactless payments increased by 97 per cent during 2017 to 5.6 billion. Almost two thirds (63 per cent) of people in the UK now use contactless payments, and no age group or region falls below 50 per cent usage.
Another feature is the increasing acceptance of card payments by smaller businesses.
By the end of 2017 there were nearly 119 million contactless cards in circulation and, with customers and businesses increasingly choosing to use contactless cards and card acceptance devices, it is anticipated 36 per cent of all payments across the UK will be contactless in 2027.
Alongside the rise in card payments, 2017 saw a decrease in cash payments by 15 per cent to 13.1 billion payments. Around 3.4 million consumers almost never used cash at all.
Yet despite this fall, cash is still the second most frequently used payment method, just behind debit cards, accounting for just over one-third (34 per cent) of all payments in 2017. Around 2.2 million customers mainly used cash for their day-to-day shopping in 2017, although nine out of ten of them had a debit card they could use if they chose, and the majority used other payment methods to pay their regular bills. It is, however, anticipated that cash will still retain its place as the second most frequently used payment method in 2027.
Stephen Jones, chief executive of UK Finance said: “The choice of payment options available in the UK is allowing people to choose to pay the way that best suits them.
“But we’re far from becoming a cash-free society and despite the UK transforming to an economy where cash is less important than it once was, it will remain a payment method that continues to be valued and preferred by many.
“These trends are likely to shift further over the next decade. Developments such as Open Banking are expected to bring extensive changes to the payments landscape, something that will likely shape how we interact with our money in the coming years.”
Recent Posts
Recent Comments
Archives
- October 2024
- September 2024
- August 2024
- July 2024
- June 2024
- May 2024
- April 2024
- March 2024
- February 2024
- January 2024
- December 2023
- November 2023
- October 2023
- September 2023
- August 2023
- July 2023
- June 2023
- May 2023
- April 2023
- March 2023
- September 2022
- August 2022
- July 2022
- June 2022
- May 2022
- April 2022
- March 2022
- February 2022
- January 2022
- December 2021
- November 2021
- October 2021
- September 2021
- August 2021
- July 2021
- June 2021
- May 2021
- April 2021
- March 2021
- February 2021
- January 2021
- November 2020
- September 2020
- July 2020
- May 2020
- April 2020
- January 2020
- December 2019
- November 2019
- October 2019
- September 2019
- August 2019
- July 2019
- June 2019
- May 2019
- April 2019
- March 2019
- February 2019
- January 2019
- December 2018
- November 2018
- October 2018
- September 2018
- August 2018
- July 2018
- June 2018
- May 2018
- April 2018
- March 2018
- February 2018
- January 2018
- December 2017
- November 2017
- October 2017
- September 2017
- August 2017
- July 2017
- June 2017
- May 2017
- February 2017