MasterCard Thursday released new research that reveals Europeans will head to the beach this summer with lighter wallets as they increasingly prefer payment cards to cash.
The survey showed consumers especially prefer using cards while on vacation, with 91% of respondents carrying their cards then as opposed to 60% when home. Some 53% of respondents said they would like to pay more with a card when on vacation.
Consumers increasing preference for plastic over cash is based on convenience as 65% of respondents stating this as their primary reason. That was followed with fear of cash being stolen (41%), security (38%), not having cash on hand (37%), speed (34%), and better tracking of expenses (30%). Surprisingly , 44% of all Europeans are convinced cash will soon become a thing of the past thanks to the speed of innovation.
Jennifer Rademaker, Head of Core Products Europe at MasterCard, remarked:
“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. 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.”
Though the new MasterCard research adds to the growing number of surveys and studies pointing to the decline of cash, the UK Payments Council earlier this month suggested cash use increased 10%. Whether cash use is truly on the decline in Europe, respondents in MasterCard’s survey show the benefits of electronic payment instruments are becoming more apparent to consumers. This only bodes well for the future migration to a cashless society.
