Source · Select Committees · Treasury Committee
Recommendation 122
122
Rejected
Monitor cash acceptance levels and report annually to the Committee on tolerable levels.
Conclusion
There may come a time in the future where it becomes necessary for HM Treasury to mandate cash acceptance if appropriate safeguards have not been implemented for those who need physical cash, and the level of cash acceptance begins to lead to widespread detriment. To ensure that HM Treasury has the information it needs to make this decision, cash acceptance levels in the UK must be monitored to ensure we do not sleepwalk into a loss of cash acceptance for those who need it. HM Treasury must provide the Treasury Committee with annual reporting on cash acceptance levels and provide an analysis of HM Treasury’s view of the tolerable level of cash acceptance in society. (Recommendation)
Government Response Summary
The government agreed to continually monitor cash acceptance levels through existing data sources but rejected the call for annual reporting to the Treasury Committee, believing current ongoing data collection provides sufficient information.
Government Response
Rejected
HM Government
Rejected
The Government agrees that levels of cash acceptance should continue to be monitored and is committed to continually monitoring and evaluating all relevant payments data, including data on consumer preferences and trends, in order to inform future policy and ensure consumers and businesses have a choice of payment methods to meet their needs. Evidence shows that cash acceptance remains high. Data from the British Retail Consortium’s 2024 Payments Survey11 shows that 100% of survey respondents confirmed they still accept cash in physical stores. The Association of Convenience Stores12 state that, across its members, cash is the most widely accepted method of payment with 99% of all stores accepting it. The Bank of England regularly collects data on consumers’ payment preferences, including the consumer experience of cash acceptance. In January, the Bank of England expanded this data collection 10 Services, public functions and associations: Code of Practice | EHRC 11 2024-payments-survey.pdf 12 ACS Local Shop Report 2024 (low res).pdf with a new question seeking to understand the impact of a business refusing cash on individuals. Where consumers did encounter a cash free store, 8% had to go to a different store to complete their purchase and 6% did not purchase the item they wanted at all. The Bank of England has committed to continuing to include this additional question on cash acceptance in its surveys of consumers, allowing the government another avenue to monitor cash acceptance levels and the impact of cash acceptance on an ongoing basis, alongside data from industry. The Government believes that available evidence provides a detailed picture of cash acceptance that is wide ranging and regularly updated. Therefore, it does not consider there is a need for annual reporting but remains committed to evaluating relevant data on an ongoing basis. Recommendation 8 In its interim assessment of the current cash access regulation (see Conclusions and recommendations for the UK), HM Treasury must include an assessment of how the problem of declining cash access is being tackled internationally. This must include an assessment of elements of, or all of, these approaches would work in the UK.