29 April 2008
The use of credit cards is in decline as the credit crunch really begins to take a grip, it has been suggested this week.
According to the British Retail Consortium (BRC), cash is becoming more popular with consumers as they are reluctant to get into debt.
There is a great amount of "pressure" in the current economic climate, said spokesman Richard Dodd, so cash is a good alternative to see that credit isn't taken out.
And "enthusiasm" for using cards is diminishing all the time, he added, as customers find it difficult to monitor their monetary situation using such products.
He commented: "The thing about cash is it's a tangible amount; you have either got it or you haven't got it."
Via this option, people are less likely to spend cash that they simply do not have, Mr Dodd asserted.
Across the last year, paper money was used in 60% of total transactions, the BRC revealed.