In this era of “chip and PIN”, and swipe cards to get around on public transport, it is increasingly possible to spend an entire day without handling any cash. Indeed, it can be only too easy to leave the house for a day’s activities and completely forget to bring any cash along. Such simple slips can, however, lead to embarrassment at lunchtime in the office restaurant. It is not unheard of to queue up at the hot counter, create a tempting plateful of food, and then be strapped for cash at the till. Usually this is only resolved by a dash to the nearest cashpoint, which could, however, be a twenty minute walk away. Meanwhile that lovely plate of food goes cold.
Increasingly, businesses are becoming aware of the changing culture when it comes to carrying cash around, and are resorting to cashless payment systems. A pre-agreed amount of money is pre-stored on an office smart card, which the employee then swipes at the till in the lunch queue. Employees soon leap at the chance to make use of this new system, realising how much hassle it saves them. This is especially the case for night shift workers, who benefit from cashless vending systems.
Cashless payment systems are especially useful when part of integrated security solutions. Employees feel protected through the combined use of ID monitoring, CCTV, security card patrols, and, cashless payment systems. After all, if they are not carrying much, or any, cash around at work, they are generally less vulnerable when it comes to unwonted intrusions.
