The FINANCIAL — Europeans want to enjoy cashfree holidays, says new research from MasterCard. The survey shows how people across Europe prefer having their cards on hand on holiday, more than the rest of the year: 91% of them carry their cards while on holiday vs 60% at home and over half or 53% of those questioned would like to pay more by card when on vacation.
The main reasons Europeans cite to pay by card on holiday are convenience (65%), fear of cash being stolen (41%), security (38%), not having cash on hand (37%), speed (34%) and better tracking of expenses (30%). Additionally 44% of all Europeans are convinced cash will soon become a thing of the past, thanks to the speed of innovation. A staggering 50% of European consumers believe that cash is the cheapest way to pay, but in fact every single person actually pays – usually without knowing it – to process, circulate and protect that hard currency. For instance, cash costs every German citizen €150 a year, according to MasterCard.
For Europeans time is valuable when on holiday; 51% of them consider that looking for a cash machine on holiday is wasting time that could be spent on the beach or enjoying the city. 29% often feel lost on holiday when they can’t pay by card.There are however, some small expenses where Europeans don’t yet feel comfortable reaching for their cards on holiday, particularly for small purchases, which are more often paid for by cash: for instance, Europeans pay mostly with cash for postcards (85%), ice cream or snacks (84%), tips for the waiter (83%), taxis (77%) or even souvenirs (61%), according to MasterCard.
“A cashfree way of life is becoming easier every day. European consumers clearly see the advantages of electronic payments on holiday and consequently want to use them more," said Jennifer Rademaker, Head of Core Products Europe at MasterCard. "For all these reasons, we’ve decided to develop an international socio-cultural campaign called NoCash Summer. Throughout Europe, NoCash pioneers will be challenged to use as little cash as possible, including for their smallest purchases. During the next few weeks, they will share photos, videos and messages about the reality and benefits of a world beyond cash on our brand new Tumblr blog. We have no doubt it will be fun and also eye-opening for everyone. The future of payments is now,” she added.
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