Following on from worldwide payment problems faced by McDonald’s last week, Greggs has experienced reported issues taking card payments up and down the country.
The fast-food chain found it to be a slow morning, having to turn away any customer that was unable to pay with cash. It is unclear how many of the 2450 Greggs stores have been affected by the outage.
Most of the time these issues are rare and quickly resolved. However recently there have been some high-profile examples of where one technical issue can cause huge damage and hindrance for many people. Last year payment processor Square experienced outages that stopped SMBs from taking payment all over the world.
Shining a light on the importance of cash
Much like all the hungry people forgoing their sausage rolls today, Andrew Martin, Found of SMEB, highlights the importance of cash in today’s society. He said: “The card payment issues experienced by some of the UK’s largest businesses over the past week have shone a fresh light on the continued importance of cash in today’s society. It is the latest sign that the march to a completely cashless society is a bad idea.
“Millions of customers still recognise that cash is a convenient and secure payment method, and they like that it won’t simply disappear, even if your internet reception does.
“Unfortunately for businesses, getting your hands on it is not as easy as it used to be. The UK has lost 6000 branches of banks and building societies since 2015, meaning that access to crucial financial services, such as the ability to withdraw and deposit cash at the end of the day, is no longer possible in many areas. Action is urgently needed to solve the UK’s banking deserts. For every day that we have to wait, local businesses will suffer.”
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