Cash only

[Tin Pot]

It seems all the card payment systems, including some cashpoints, have gone down this afternoon. Mid-way through getting some shopping I heard an announcement that all tills could only take cash. People, including me, just walked out, not having the means to pay in cash. What happened to the cashless society then, eh? That didn't last long .

Pretty sure you can blame the Americans.

All my buddies protecting Visa Europe have been given their marching orders since Visa.com (US) re-acquired them. I have not seen a single instance in my career where a US parent company has given a flying fark what happens outside of the US.

It’s an obsolete business anyway, cards are dead. Move over to other systems.

Or try out this anonymous system of exchanging tokens I’ve been looking at. Never been a fan, but have you heard of “pound notes”? It sounds crazy, but I think it’s one better than bitcoin imho.

 

[ianrauk]

Its just Visa payments. Visa Contactless is still working. MasterCard and Amex are unaffected

 

[C R]

Just been to Tesco and card payment working all right in the shop, but the petrol station was only taking cash.

 

[Jenkins]

No problem in Tesco this afternoon with the Visa debit card, then 15 minutes later in Morrisons, payment not authorised and I had to use the emrgency tenner. 1 hour later at home, no problems with the same card for online transactions for gig & race tickets.

 

[Stephenite]

No probs in Norway.

 

[TVC]

The BBC are reporting that Visa say it was a hardware problem and not the actions of an external actor.

 

[slowmotion]

I now have only two tenners in my pocket and I'm still feeling bloody smug.

 

[Stephenite]

No probs in Norway.

I take it back. Apparently, there were. Norwegian cards have two payment systems available. A norwegian owned solution plus visa.

 

[DRHysted]

A few years back something similar happened to all the tills in our local Asda. The shop quite simply ran up the amount owed the shoppers went to the ATM outside got the cash and returned to pay the bill.
Took a bit longer than normal, but we all copped.

 

[slowmotion]

I think we have a full-on "First World Problem".

 

[Illaveago]

What would happen if it coincided with a cash machine problem ? Cheque's !

Oh! They've stopped taking them .

 

[mjr]

Or try out this anonymous system of exchanging tokens I’ve been looking at. Never been a fan, but have you heard of “pound notes”? It sounds crazy, but I think it’s one better than bitcoin imho.

It's a shame the card monopolies and governments have strangled all the electronic cash systems. Seen MasterCard's Mondex or Visa Cash anywhere lately? Yet we're not allowed Oyster more widely because it'd interfere with this market which seems not to exist in practice!

 

[mybike]

Pah, you are just a child.

I remember the issue of petrol coupons in the Arab Israeli war in the early 1970s.

They were given out as a precaution, but people were never asked to use them.

When ours arrived, an elderly relative nipped upstairs and returned with some coupons he'd kept since the Second World War (or just after).

Crafty old bugger was hoping they would still be valid and he would get twice as much petrol.

If I recall correctly I was told they were exactly the same.

 

[craigwend]

I liked the advice that customer's were advised to use alternative 'payment systems' aka - cash

 

[Lullabelle]

I feel for those who did their grocery shop, bagged up then were refused. Yes they could go to a cash machine but the queues were probably long and frozen stuff warming up which is not good.