Cash is King, EFTPOS is Second
Oct 11, 2024
July’s global IT outage revealed the ugly side of reliance on technology, and indeed some of the people let down by it, with Retail New Zealand highlighting that ‘cash is king’ in the aftermath of ‘disappointing’ behaviour from customers failed by cashless payments.
Carolyn Young, Chief Executive of Retail NZ—the voice of New Zealand’s retail sector—says people became agitated when payments wouldn’t go through, knowing they had sufficient funds in their accounts, especially early on as people were not yet aware of how widespread and prolonged the problems would be.
There were people at the supermarket and various other places where they’re trying to purchase items that they wanted for that evening and they couldn’t do it. So they were frustrated and, unfortunately, their frustration came out in aggressive and quite confrontational conversations with retail staff.
Young says ‘the incident revealed how reliant businesses [are] on technology and how interconnected everything [has become]’. Her advice to retailers the following day was to check their systems ahead of opening so they could immediately make people aware of potential issues as they entered a store. Additionally, at all times, a readiness to accept cash payments provides a backup for occasions when systems fail, and greater inclusion for those who cannot or prefer not to use cashless options.
While cash is always online, and usable even in the absence of electricity, Young notes that EFTPOS (Electronic Funds Transfer at Point of Sale) systems may at least work in an offline mode if correctly configured. The moral of the story—once again—is that the best approach for customers and retailers alike is to offer the broadest range of payments possible, and always be ready to take cash.
Cash is king, and then EFTPOS would be second.