Do you refuse to pay on card under a certain amount?

JustAnotherSaver

I know some places say they wont take card unless the amount is [£x.yz or more] but i don't really see these around any more these days.


My wife refuses to pay on card for anything under £5.00. I personally think this is strange but that's just me. I buy £1 scratch cards & pay via contactless. I've bought a newspaper on a card before. At the end of the day it's just money and with the introduction of contactless it's even easier as you don't need to faff around inputting a PIN for pence.



Plus there's a bank statement record of your spend & where it was.


Just wondered how the board here was split.

PasturesNew

I'd try not to use a card... I mostly deal in cash, but 1-2x a year one can find one's forgotten the purse, changed the bag, didn't expect to need to buy something - and the cash is not immediately in your hand.... so the card is used embarrassingly under £10.

I know shopkeepers used to be charged per transaction, so to use a card on smaller amounts meant they made 0p profit after banking costs.

eskbanker

PasturesNew wrote: »

I'd try not to use a card... I mostly deal in cash, but 1-2x a year one can find one's forgotten the purse, changed the bag, didn't expect to need to buy something - and the cash is not immediately in your hand.... so the card is used embarrassingly under £10.

Personally I use a card for any amount without feeling in the least embarrassed about it! As we move ever closer towards a cashless society I strongly suspect that I'm not alone, although this thread will perhaps illustrate where the consensus, if any, lies.

PasturesNew wrote: »

I know shopkeepers used to be charged per transaction, so to use a card on smaller amounts meant they made 0p profit after banking costs.

Even if this still applied, it's their prerogative to set a minimum card payment, so if they don't then I wouldn't expect to have to consider my profitability for them!

Linton

I use a debit card for all but the most trivial expenses. This ensures that all expenditure is itemised on the bank statement and can be directly downloaded to MSMoney (or other software) and in most cases automatically categorised for monitoring

greyteam1959

I use a card for absolutely ever bit of expenditure right down to 40 or 50 pence.
If a retailer does not want to accept my card tough luck I will go elsewhere.

crumpetman

If the retailer accepts it then I will always pay on card, I think the smallest amount was 19p at WH Smiths. I don't usually have loose change, just the cards and bank notes so I would rather not pay for something with a note and end up with a pocket of change.

Newly_retired

I don’t have a set lower limit, but in practice it is usually anything over about £7. I still need cash to pay the bin man, put in a collection tin, buy from a market stall or antique fair.
Our buses take contactless now.
I shop for small amounts at Aldi, use contactless, so it is good to have a record of these purchases. I couldn’t believe my eyes when a lady paid her shopping bill of £75 in cash today in Aldi.

stripeyfox

If the place will accept it then I'll pay with my card, regardless of the amount.

I tend to only draw out cash if there is something specific I require it for - pay the window cleaner, car wash guys etc

Zero_Sum

Co-op bank pay 5p cashback on card transactions. So if I buy something for £1, its a 5% return.

For me, small amount are paid by debit card & larger ones (£5+) go on credit card

happyandcontented

I don't use a card for less than £10 generally, however, today I picked up a hire car via my insurance and was only allowed to pay the £1 nominal fee by card and they didn't use contactless! I always carry at least £20 in cash, just habit I suppose.

EssexExile

I'm usually a cash person if I have enough on me. My wife puts everything on a card, debit for trivial amounts & credit for bigger things.