Don’t bash cash during coronavirus outbreak
UK-based cash technology solutions venture Glory Group has leapt to the defence of notes and coins amid the coronavirus outbreak.
Cash usage in Britain halved in just a few days after Prime Minister Boris Johnson outlined strict new measures to tackle the spread of coronavirus.
Many retailers have been urging shoppers to ditch physical money in these challenging times. Waitrose, for instance, recently announced a series of social distancing measures for its UK stores. These include a drive to encourage more customers to shop in a cashless way to prevent unnecessary contact.
Glory Group, however, stresses that for many people, in nearly all countries, cash remains, if not king, then a major means of making payments.
“In the UK and several parts of the USA it has been recognised that everything must be done to ensure people have access to cash and that they are able to use it in retail outlets if they so wish,” it says in a blog post. “The reasons for this inclusive approach remain current, though cash has now come under threat from another source - media interpretation of scientific evidence.”
It adds: “Now we are told cash carries bacteria, therefore it must carry the coronavirus, therefore it is bad, therefore people shouldn't use it. But is cash that different from the alternative payment methods and given the primary means of transmission, shouldn't we rather be focussing on other things?”
This is not in line with WHO advice. Indeed, the WHO has said its comments have been misinterpreted by the UK media and that there is no evidence that cash enables the virus to spread, Glory Group says. It flags up creditcards.com research which shows that plastic cards carry more bacteria than notes or coins.
The main means of transmission of Covid-19 is via physical contact and via 'droplets' from infected individuals, hence the need for social distancing. “When we visit a retail outlet, we all touch a number of surfaces that have been touched by others. These will include trolleys, hand baskets, goods touched by others, PIN pads and self-service touchscreens,” Glory Group says.
“Now nobody is saying you are going to catch coronavirus from touching these objects, but that it is best practice to wash your hands after you have done so. The same logic applies whatever your payment method, whether it is card using pin, contactless payments (available below certain amounts) or cash.”
“In the current situation we all need to make payments. For many people, and particularly some of those in at risk groups, this means using cash. There is no evidence for making things more difficult for them or for restricting choice for those who are simply happier using cash,” it concludes.
