Free-to-use Link ATMs across the UK at risk of being closed down - The Guardian

Must’ve been a very small supermarket then. For the large ones I can’t see the smallish profits from the ATM outweighing the massive cash handling fees (it needs to be transported, counted, insured, etc - most of it can’t be automated either so this involves paying humans some $$$).

£££

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ASDA was one of them…

That’s what I was thinking. I would expect the benefits to outweigh the costs.

Cash at the branch has zero value to supermarkets; they can’t use it to pay suppliers, employees, tax authorities, or shareholders. It only has useful value when banked and giving cash back improves cash flow.

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That’s interesting. You said you’d heard of certain supermarkets not giving cash back, can you recall where you heard it?

Actually, to date Monzo have stated that they won’t bring PIN management in-app, as it creates a confusing user experience.

What is rolling out with the current accounts, is the ability to set your PIN in the app before your card ships (so it can be programmed with the PIN and there’s never any uncertainty).

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From the Guardian article:

The ATM network, which includes 70,000 machines when ones which charge for cash withdrawals are included, costs £1bn a year to run

Over £14k per year per machine? Say each one needs a dedicated line+internet connection: that’s around £60 per month - so £720. Does refilling and maintenance work really cost over 1k per month per month? And if the interchange fee is 25p that’s 56,000 transactions a year - so 153 transactions a day… Doesn’t seem too high to me.

With (at least Android) machines having NFC could the App do PIN updates like that?

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And people think cash costs less than cards!!

Dump cash and have a cashless society. What does an iZettle card reader cost, £50 tops?

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Not offering I said. As in they used to always ask if you wanted cashback. Now it is standard practice they don’t offer unless you ask.

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Ah. Apologies, I misunderstood. :bowing_man:

£29 for iZettle when you signup. I’m looking at Square who are even cheaper per cardreader.

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Cards have to be the way forward. I hate cash, and have no more than £20 at a time, more and I get a bit nervous.

Cards and now Apple/Android Pay are clearly the way forward. I could quite happily never use cash again.

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The only time I feel a little nervy about card payments, to be honest, is in bars and pubs, especially if they are busy. There’s always the argument to be had over whether the card gets handed over the bar or the terminal gets brought to the bar.

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I agree. I remember a time not that many years ago where you used to hand you card over if you were running a tab and they’d put it in a pint glass behind the bar!!!

Your average local pub/restaurant if fine, but a busy town centre bar perhaps not so. Maybe that’s when Apple Pay comes in handy as they have to bring the terminal to you. But I get what you mean.

ATMs and cash cost a fortune to maintain and are a pain to carry and a security risk to handle. Good riddance. I wouldn’t mourn the loss of closed ATMs, just quit shopping at the handful of places left that don’t take cards or charge fees to do so (soon to be illegal! Yay!)

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you say the handful of places and that is true in a big city like London. But in a small town like mine a LOT of places take only cash, and if I want to get a gents haircut on my card for example I would have to drive to another (larger) town.

Even then they might take card and just not advertise it. My barber’s says cash only but they actually take card. No complaints either, they just prefer cash as they only have one card account for the shop and don’t have accounting sorted out well enough to handle large numbers or card payments.

I’ve actually been working with them to help them come up with a better card solution. They want it.

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So stop using the bus and attending local and community events?

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Buses don’t even take cash anymore? And yes community events can be an issue but if all the ATMs left they’d have to adapt. Already, charity donation buckets have contactless readers on them…

Outside London they most certainly do! Being able to use your card is the exception.

Edit: but this definitely should change, it’s ridiculous in this day and age. So maybe the death of ATMs will drag the bus companies into the 21st century.

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