Report warns 'millions would struggle' in cashless society

31 Mar 2022

A report published by the Royal Society of Arts (RSA) has suggested that millions of individuals in the UK would struggle if cash was phased out as a form of tender.

Despite just 17% of payments being made with notes and coins, the RSA said that ten million people would struggle to cope in a cashless society.

An additional 15 million people stated that going cashless would make budgeting more challenging.

The report found that many individuals felt that they have been pushed into a world they're ill equipped for, despite millions making use of contactless and smartphone payments.

Mark Hall, Project and Evaluations Lead at the RSA, said: 'For millions of people, their relationship with cash is critical to the way they manage their weekly budget.

'Despite online banking and shopping becoming more common, our research shows the percentage of the population wholly reliant on cash is unchanged.'