UK Wants To Phase Out Checks By 2018

The board of the UK Payments Council has set a date to phase out checks in a bid to encourage the advance of other forms of payment. They added, however, that the target of Oct. 2018 would only be realized if adequate alternatives are developed. "The goal is to ensure that by 2018 there is no scenario where customers, individuals or businesses, still need to use a cheque. The board will be especially concerned that the needs of elderly and vulnerable people are met," the Payments Council said in a statement.

Comments

Wrong

[hoofie]

It isn't spelt 'checks' it's 'cheques' in the UK - for fucks sake get it right.

Re:Wrong

[TheEvilOverlord]

This is a US site;

I always find this a slightly strange assertion, being a user from the UK. Yes the site was started by someone in the US, and a big chunk of the userbase is in the USA, but stories are submitted from a global audience and link to content that is hosted globally.

It's a bit like claiming the whole Internet is american, because well that's where it started, or that the web is british, because a british guy invented it. It's all a bit silly really.

Re:How do people pay eachother?

[BorgDrone]

> If I wanted to buy a car from somebody, how would I do it?

Transfer money from your bank account directly to theirs ?

Re:Good Riddance

[McHenry Boatride]

Cheques aren't just used in retail. Many small businesses - builders, central heating engineers, and others of that ilk - accept, and prefer, payment by cheque or by cash. They don't want the extra expense of accepting credit cards, and not all customers have access to electronic funds transfer.

Some acceptable alternative, that doesn't involve having a computer of a rather insecure mobile phone, will need to be devised before phasing out cheques completely.

Re:How do people pay eachother?

[rve]

Bank transfers, Mr. Conspiracy Theorist. Cheques have been obsolete in much of Europe for years, yet there's no crushing dictatorship preventing people from giving money to one another.

Continental Europe here. Haven't used checks since the 80's, I didn't know they still existed. You used to put a bank transfer order in your bank's mailbox or mail it to them, but even that is something I haven't done this century, as it's so much more convenient to just enter a bank transfer order on your online banking web site.

Re:Good Riddance

[u38cg]

In the UK, the card transaction can't start until the physical transaction is complete, and require a PIN and two-way authentication. Some tills even lock up when you put your card in too early.