Paper Peviews

For some people, the dawn of the debit card era has arrived and they believe soon we will never use cash to buy things with again. Others think that will happen around the same time that people start driving around in space cars, or when we have domesticated robot maids to clean our homes and make our meals. However in modern society it is possible even now to forget your cash on a daily basis.

Think about your daily routine. When you get gas, almost every gas station has a pay at the pump option. Also supermarkets, shops and restaurants have card terminals attached to their retail cash register. There are even card terminals at the windows of drive thru fast food places. With these technological advances it would be possible to live most days without a single coin in your pocket or note in your wallet.

As with any choice there are advantages associated with going “cashless” or not, as well as disadvantages. Using cash requires an in person transaction at the retail cash register. It’s very easily stolen, and you are unable to purchase online using cash. However, by using cash you can remain anonymous whereas cards mean that some of your personal details are passed to the seller. With cards, there is a risk of fraud and identity theft.

Over-spending is one of the biggest problems people have with their credit card. It’s very easy to spend more than what your budget allows when you aren’t counting out the actual cash and seeing the hard earned money leave your hands.

You can decide whether you want to use your cash or your card because we still have the choice to use both in most places. One cannot say for definite if we will ever be forced to stop using cash but the credit card companies enjoy the fact that we use them more and more in society. Until then, become familiar with the advantages and disadvantages of each option, and decide which will work for your personal financial habits and discipline.