Arrow left dark
Newsletter icon SUBSCRIBE

Debit cards overtake cash to become number one payment method in the UK

Clock icon Reading time: 2 minutes

The volume of retail purchases made by card now accounts for more than half of all customer transactions in the UK for the first ever time, according to the British Retail Consortium.

The BRC’s latest annual Payments Survey, released today, show the milestone has been reached partly because of UK consumers increasingly using cards for lower value payments.

Cards have become the dominant payment method as retailers’ investment in payment technology has facilitated greater customer choice over how they pay for their goods both in store and online.

David Lonsdale, director of the Scottish Retail Consortium, said retailers had substantially invested in methods to make shopping and paying easier.

He said: “The availability of contactless methods of payment, self-service tills and online sales has increased the use of debit cards in particular for smaller payments, eclipsing the use of cash for the first time in terms of the volume of retail purchases.

“This is a milestone in the development of our digital economy, with customers embracing digital shopping and retailers adapting to meet the demand.” THE Duke of Buccleuch shows off a stunning tiara from a new collection that is going on display at his Borders home.

The survey also reveals:

  • New regulations have helped deliver savings for retailers.Investment in payments has been boosted by savings of around £500 million for retailers and their customers from the EU Interchange Fee Regulation (IFR), introduced following a successful campaign by the BRC, which caps some of the fees for handling credit and debit card transactions.

  • The burden on businesses is still high.Despite these savings from the IFR, retailers still spent over £1 billion last year to accept payments from customers and the cost of processing cards remains high, particularly for credit cards.

  • Retail customers are less reliant on credit. Retail spending on credit cards has fallen and represents a diminished share of retail purchases by value. This shows consumers borrowing less for day-to-day purchases, in contrast to wider growth in unsecured consumer lending in the UK.

    •  

    Share icon
    Share this article: