Editorial: The time is coming when there will be no cash for a quick deal

Are we fast heading for a cashless society? Photo / NZME

It's going to be a little difficult for drug dealers to carry around eftpos machines if New Zealand turns its back on cash.

How will they justify all the money suddenly being paid into their bank accounts?

There will be no more bags of cash hidden in walls and under mattresses. No more cash deals for big-ticket items such as Harleys and cars.

There will be people huddled on dark doorsteps trying to hit the right pin number.

Already, most people these days don't carry cash. A quick poll of the office found that about half of us had at least a little cash in our wallets but a few of them said they didn't usually carry it.

My mother always kept cash in her purse. Every week she would draw out a certain amount and use it to pay the lawnmower man, buy bread and milk at the corner dairy or to pay her hairdresser.

However, it appears more Bay businesses are opting for saying no to cash, for security and sanitation reasons.

I understand the security reasons.

It would safeguard businesses from being the target of robbers and take temptation away from dishonest staff.

A cashless society seems inevitable when you think about the way we spend our money today compared with 1985 when Eftpos was first introduced to New Zealand through a pilot scheme with petrol stations.

I well remember being totally confused about this new way of paying for things and thinking I would never get my head around it.

Today, most retailers reach for the eftpos machine to ring your sale up before you have a chance to say "I have cash".

It will be hardest for those who still use cash to budget. They know once they have spent it there's no more until next payday.

Having money in hand is also a good way to teach children that there is not a never-ending supply of cash coming out of a hole in the wall. I've had more than one child tell me to go to the machine when I have said I don't have enough money for a toy that looks like it would last two minutes.

Covid has also played a hand in pushing us in the direction of a cashless society sooner than we all expected.

It will happen, but I don't think we are quite ready for it yet.

The Tooth Fairy and buskers are going to be well and truly out of pocket, as are charities that still rely on that loose change in your pocket.

And what about our Lotto winnings? That lovely little bit of cash passed over the counter every five years. I'll miss it.