Credit and debit card use sees decline of cheque

The increased use of credit cards and debit cards by consumers that want to conduct cashless transactions has resulted in a further decline in the use of the cheque.

At one time cheques were the main method of making cashless payments, hitting a peak of eleven million cheques a day being written in 1990.

However, this figure has been declining as more and more people rely on credit and debit cards, and this has seen the number of cheques being written fall sharply.

The use of cheques fell by 9% last year, with just 1.6 billion cheques written over the course of the years.

Consumers can now use credit and debit cards to pay for purchases in shops, as well as when ordering by phone and online, making them easier and more convenient than cheque payments.

Many companies, such as utility firms, are also encouraging consumers to set up direct debits to pay bills by charging extra if they pay by cheque, as many often did in the past. This is also affecting the number of cheques being used.

With so many people now using credit and debit cards to make purchases many retailers have now stopped accepting cheque payments.

This includes Asda, Morrisons, Shell, and Boots, amongst others. Supermarket giant Tesco and Marks & Spencer are due to follow suit and ban the use of cheques in the next couple of weeks.

One industry official stated that the younger generation of today have grown up using credit and debit cards, and have never had to rely on cheques, and as time goes on the use of cheques is likely to decline further.