Cause in Canada you have to pay a premium to keep information confidential from the government... they will soon add an additional tax if you pay cash since they cant track your cashflow...

 

Cause in Canada you have to pay a premium to keep information confidential from the government... they will soon add an additional tax if you pay cash so they cant track your cashflow...

 

MEC did that briefly. All the people that lived out of the city and ordered on-line because they couldn't easily get to a store complained about unfair treatment. No more cash discounts.

 

From the business' perspective, there is arguably no benefit to offering cash discounts unless you are selling "under the table".

 

And since a 2.5% surcharge discourages people from making credit card purchases you loose potential sales because people won’t want to pay the additional fee.

 

It depends. It may well have disappeared entirely, but I've made plenty of purchases in past from places that had a "cash discount". Of course, one of the prime motives for the omnipresence of credit cards is not just "consumer convenience", but because people will spend more when it doesn't feel like money. So I see fewer and fewer places offering that sort of discount.

Personally, unless a purchase cannot be made any other way in a timely fashion, I will always use cash. I like the way it limits my spending. I'll use a credit card when buying parts from the Thai electronics distributor I buy from. Bad enough it takes 3-4 weeks for stuff to get here. If I had to tack on another few weeks for a money order to arrive there and be processed, I'd never get anything built!

 

Personally, unless a purchase cannot be made any other way in a timely fashion, I will always use cash. I like the way it limits my spending.

I was thinking about exactly that yesterday - how having cash in your wallet makes you much more aware of your spending and thus limits your spending. I was out shopping, had cash in my wallet, and actually used it for a change so was acutely aware of how much I had spent in each store.

That being said, it is often more convenient to use debit or credit as those negate the need to go to the bank machine. I recently switched banks (had been with Royal my whole life until about a decade ago when I switched to BMO, and have just switched back to Royal) so am not as aware of where my new bank's machines are as I was of my old bank's machines. Plus, I get points when I use my credit cards so I tend to use them instead of my debit card, or cash when I do have it in my wallet, and simply pay the bill online when I get home (I regularly make payments before the purchases have actually hit my account). Since I use those points regularly, it is worth it to me to do it that way (my coffee maker crapped out last Sunday, which thoroughly ruined my morning as I was forced to drink instant coffee, and my kettle was starting to act up so I popped out and got new ones that day entirely on points).

 

I'm with Royal myself. Not out of any great allegiance, but simply because I think it was once conveniently located for me when I had no car, and have had no real reason to change. They used to have "Instant tellers" at all Esso stations (which was my principle reason for gassing up at Esso, even though I had no particular allegiance to them), but have recently replaced them all with ATMs that charge a fee for withdrawals. So my attachment to Esso has dwindled considerably.

My wife constantly tells me about this or that obtained on points. I have things like an Optimum card to get the senior's discount at Shoppers, but eschew all loyalty programs, and decline to collect points on that card, Air Miles or anything similar. They are not "free". Why the heck would a retailer turn benevolent? My view is that all such programs are intended to encourage spending. It's no different than a grocery chain selling grapes cheap that week so that you'll come to the store and buy lots of other things when you come for the grapes. It's certainly not just to be nice. My wife says "Well I'm going to buy stuff anyway, so I might as well collect the points." But I think she buys more than is actually needed because of the points. That's why I like cash. How much can I spend? What I have in my pocket, and no more. I'm not pissing on those who adopt another approach, but this works very nicely for me. It's how I paid off my house in full in 12 years, from a fully cold start with no equity, and saved up enough that I felt confident in retiring, despite a fairly modest pension.

 

My wife constantly tells me about this or that obtained on points. I have things like an Optimum card to get the senior's discount at Shoppers, but eschew all loyalty programs, and decline to collect points on that card, Air Miles or anything similar. They are not "free".

Mine are free.

I have a CTFS (Canadian Tire Financial Services) Mastercard (actually, I have a couple of them). Remember Canadian Tire Money which was free simply for shopping at CT? That is what I collect on that card, although it has been renamed and is no longer Canadian Tire Money. I get it wherever I shop, and get more when I shop at CT or other stores that they own (ie. Mark's Work Wearhouse, Sportchek, etc.). Since I would be spending the money anyway, why not use a card which really does give me free points/money, especially when it can be redeemed not only at CT but also at any other store they own? The card also gets me discounts on gas and extra points if I use their gas bars (I don't, I use Costco for gas).

So when I needed a new coffee maker and kettle I simply popped over to CT, picked out what I wanted, used my points and walked away with the items without having spent a penny.

 

Short answer OP, not enough people ask for it. It would take only a few days of people going to a major retailer, asking for a cash discount, asking for mgr if denied (person on till has no say); and walking out if not given.

Problem, I would suggest is from watching shoppers in large urban retailers the majority don't, "shop", they wander aimlessly and impulse purchase; never looking at either the price of the items they put in the cart, or the bill at the till, or even keep the paper receipt.

People on a budget generally grocery shop with a list of some sort, I rarely see that, for eg.

I also suspect the real reason lot's of people don't use cash is you need a positive balance to have cash. Not so with plastic.

 

Interesting perspectives... Maybe it is a generational thing. I grew up only ever using plastic, and almost never having cash (considering carrying cash an inconvenience more than anything.)

I live by my budget.
$X - For all expected monthly expenses, including budgeted "fun" spending money (that isn't always spent.)
$Y - To savings, set aside for all expected annual expenses and a "rainy day fund" (or saving for big things like major repairs and renovations.)
$Z - To investments (TFSA, RRSP, and Stocks)

Everything that can be put on credit card is put on the credit card (to get the benefits from points/cashback/etc.) Of course, all that is budgeted, so the card is paid off in full every month. Everything else is a pre-authorized transfer. Any extra money left over is invested or maybe saved for a big "fun" purchase/vacation planned for the future.

Now, if only managing the business' finances were so simple. Ha!

 

Interesting perspectives... Maybe it is a generational thing. I grew up only ever using plastic, and almost never having cash (considering carrying cash an inconvenience more than anything.)

I live by my budget.
$X - For all expected monthly expenses, including budgeted "fun" spending money (that isn't always spent.)
$Y - To savings, set aside for all expected annual expenses and a "rainy day fund" (or saving for big things like major repairs and renovations.)
$Z - To investments (TFSA, RRSP, and Stocks)

Everything that can be put on credit card is put on the credit card (to get the benefits from points/cashback/etc.) Of course, all that is budgeted, so the card is paid off in full every month. Everything else is a pre-authorized transfer. Any extra money left over is invested or maybe saved for a big "fun" purchase/vacation planned for the future.

That's basically what I do as well. Why use my money when I can use someone else's for free, and get points or rebates on top of it? The purchases are always budgeted, so it is never financing debt, just carrying charges for a few weeks. I never pay interest on credit cards.

 

Several service stations in our area offer discounts (~$0.02/litre) for cash or debit purchase.

Have you noticed the retailers that offer "cash back"? Ever wonder why they do that? It costs money to handle cash, and retailers that handle a lot are at risk to lose more than they would for a debit or CC purchase. e.g. Theft, internal theft, incorrect receipt or change at register, labour costs to sort, count, transport and deposit, etc.

 

There's a reason why places that have lucrative points cards are all 5%+ more expensive than other places. The cost to manage them is part of their pricing structure. If you shop somewhere that has a points program but don't use it, you are effectively paying a premium so that other people can reap the benefits of the program.

 

True. But if you spend more in that place in order to get them you ARE paying for them, even as you don't subsidize others.
Some folks have enough self-control that they carry the cards around and only do business with that retailer when they absolutely need to. But not everyone.

 

Teach your kids that banks are businesses, not your friend. Wish I learned that at 15, not post college.

 

When our older son was 5 or 6, I would give him an allowance. When we would hit the local department store in Amherst, NS, and venture into the toy section, I would remind him that he could buy ONE of these, or THREE of those, or whatever, with his money, but he couldn't have both with whatever he had in his hand or savings. Naturally, like a kid that age, he would have wanted everything, but we trained him early to think of resources as limited and requiring priorities and choices.

 

My wife pays me in cash !

Maybe I should give her a discount ?

Nah....

 

I was once asked if I had ID when I went to pay with cash....

(ok, he was kidding, but still--who knows, maybe one day)

 

I picked up two things at Walmart today and paid with cash. A Walmart employee (I'm assuming a head cashier/front end manager) swooped in and forcefully started a really lame sales pitch saying, "Why are you still paying with cash, don't you want a Walmart card." I shook my head no with no emotion. She then proceeded to tell me I'll get up to $30 cash back before December. I shoot my head no again without even opening my mouth.

I'm really starting to use cash again because I tend to spend less that way, and I don't like every little purchase showing up on my bank account info. I'm not paranoid, but I like to retain some privacy.

 

I'm really starting to use cash again because I tend to spend less that way, and I don't like every little purchase showing up on my bank account info. I'm not paranoid, but I like to retain some privacy.

I really freaked years ago when my bank told me that I could no longer pay my bills cash at the counter.

I was politely explained that I needed to deposit my money in my account first and then I could pay my bills so that the bank could have a paper trail.... I had always paid cash at the counter before hand...

I was also advise a couple of years after that I needed to make any transactions for less than 10K or else the transaction is reported to the government.

So if I need 15K, I do 2 separate transaction of 7.5K not to be reported....

Am I paranoid ?

I think not....

 

Some stores still pass the percentage onto the buyers. Usually computer stores do this. Pay cash or pay Visa/Mastercard plus 2.5

 

There are costs inherent with accepting cash at a business. I would give it up in a second and I’ve shopped places that do not accept it. Consumers are using cash less and less, and the less they use the less value it is for a business to accept it.

Banks charge businesses fees for almost every interaction they have with them as a business, including deposits a lot of the time ( they charge YOU to take YOUR money ). Nothing is free or included when dealing with a bank as a business. Exchanging bills for coins to maintain your tils, night deposit boxes, etc...

Then there is the fact that people make mistakes counting, or employee theft that lead to a loss. Rarely a day goes by where the til counts are perfect. Maybe once a month.

Then there is the IMMENSE amount of time creating deposits, managing the tils, driving to the bank, etc. It’s hours a week and I don’t miss it one bit!

 

Exactly. Cash can be quite an inconvenience for a business. I don't see why they'd want to encourage it's use.

 

Sounds like we've moved from "The customer is always right" to "The customer must always comply with our convenience".

 

In fairness, most customers are stupid and need to be lead around by the nose.

 

Sounds like we've moved from "The customer is always right" to "The customer must always comply with our convenience".

Consumers make their choices, this is why we have giant shifts to industries like downloading music and taxis/Uber. Consumers vote with their wallets.

 

But merchants will often oblige customers to do things THEIR way, and not how the consumer wants. I use cash. Many times I have found myself in a line where I learn that the clerk ONLY takes credit or debit. I don't have a cellphone. Pay phones have all but disappeared from the landscape. Years ago, a plain vanilla savings account would pay 6-7% interest, incentivizing saving. Now the task of generating interest has been off-loaded to the customer. It goes on and on.

It's true that consumers make choices, but all too often it's a cafeteria arrangement, in which the merchant limits the choices available, and treat consumer behaviour under those conditions as consumer preference. As a lactose intolerant diabetic, I was appreciative that Chapman's ice cream offered a half-dozen or more decent flavours in their lactose-free/no-sugar-added product line. Unfortunately, in a city of one million, I have only been able to find vanilla and chocolate in the grocery chains that cover the landscape. (Unless higher-end, vanilla is usually not what I'd consider a flavour). I wrote to Chapman's, wondering if they had stopped producing the other flavours, and they said that no, they were still making them. I asked my local grocery store if they could get some of those other flavours. No luck. I gather the grocers get what they think are "sure sellers", and since there are no other choices for those of us who have to buy the stuff, we buy it. The grocers then think that's ALL they have to carry. It's not being entirely driven by consumers "voting with their wallets", any more than Cubans kept re-electing Castro or Russians re-electing Putin. Merchants limit the choices for their own convenience.

 

In fairness, most customers are stupid and need to be lead around by the nose.

Totally disagree, customers today are far more informed and have far higher expectations as a result.

 

You could be right. However, I don't think being informed makes you any brighter. There are just more ways to blow your wad, so to speak.