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UK Wants To Phase Out Checks By 2018

Posted by samzenpus on from the cash-or-credit dept.

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.

5 of 796 comments (clear)

  1. How do people pay eachother? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Interesting

    If I wanted to buy a car from somebody, how would I do it? Right now the only reasonable options are PayPal, check, cash, or credit card. The only tender an ordinary person would accept for a car are cash and check, and most people wouldn't want to handle enough cash to pay for a car.

    dom

    1. Re:How do people pay eachother? by Valdrax · · Score: 4, Interesting

      There are usually some unreasonably high fees associated with bank transfers like that. Checks are virtually free. Should it cost $20-$30 to make every transaction in the future when you could have wrote a check for free?

      There aren't such high fees in countries where that's the normal way to do business. Heck, you can do it for free in the US between many credit unions, including credit unions on other sides of the country. I've borrowed and repaid money to my family that way.

      A check is nothing more than a bank transfer form with your account and other info written down on it. The only reason bank transfers cost money in the US is because they can. (Should you at this point have any surprise left at the fact that 90% of bank fess are set up to screw you instead of cover costs?)

      --
      If it's for-profit but free, you're not the customer -- you're the product (e.g., the Slashdot Beta's "audience").
  2. I thought they were already gone in EU by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Interesting

    I hadn't seen a check in Finland for over 10 years. Then I come to US and find out it's the common way to pay bills. And transfers from bank account to another one are difficult or even impossible between two random people.

  3. In ong run should just switch to digital cash by JoshuaZ · · Score: 4, Interesting

    We have cryptographically secure algorithms for anonymous digital cash. These schemes are easy to implement using blind signatures. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blind_signature. If properly implemented such a system provides far more anonymity than cash, checks, credit cards or debit cards. We really should be working to switch to such a system.

  4. Re:Good Riddance by MakinBacon · · Score: 4, Interesting

    As a former cashier who worked at a nationwide chain, I believe that the death of the check will be welcomed by those at all levels of retail. I have been involved in many horror stories caused by my registers check scanner accidentally tearing the check in half. Also, I had the awkward duty of explaining to people that their checks are no good and cannot be accepted without being able to tell them why (when the cashier scans your check, the register automatically does a background check).