A shopper has issued a dire warning to Aussies as the transition to a cashless society continues.
Sydney-based DJ and music producer Tom Budin fears self-service checkouts that accept cash will soon become a thing of the past following a recent shopping trip to his local Coles.
He was alarmed to discover that seven out of nine self-service checkouts were ‘card only’, prompting campaigners to issue a desperate plea to the federal government to protect cash.
Mr Budin uploaded a video to Tiktok taken inside the store counting the marked ‘card-only’ registers before zooming in on the two remaining checkouts in the far corner, which were unmarked.
He also asked followers about their thoughts on whether Coles will become completely cashless.
Of the nine self-serve checkouts at Tom Budin’s local Coles, seven were ‘card-only’
‘Only two machines left that accept cash and, mark my words, these machines, in my opinion, will be gone by the end of the year,’ he explains in the video.
‘What a world we live in, ladies and gentlemen.’
Mr Budin’s video sparked a divided response among viewers.
Many have already embraced the move towards a cashless society.
‘What’s wrong with Card only? More convenient,’ one viewer wrote.
Another added: ‘So are Coles pushing an agenda or are they catering to how the majority of customers already pay?’
Other shoppers vowed to continue using cash.
‘Cashless is great until there’s a power outage or our phone dies… ,’ one wrote.
Another added: ‘Legally can’t say no to cash. If it remains a legal tender.’
A third wrote: ‘My Coles had no cash machine just card only I had to wait for someone to serve me to pay with cash.’
Coles declined to comment when contacted by other than to say ‘there is no truth to what is being claimed in the video’.
It’s understood Coles has no plans to remove cash self-service options.
The two unmarked registers accepting cash were located in the far corner of the checkout area
Sydney DJ Tom Budin fears Coles will be cashless by the end of the year
Cash advocates claim Coles has made ‘a big mistake’ as they launched a petition and urged the federal government to take more action to protect cash.
‘In many Coles stores, staff ask: ‘Are you paying cash or card?’. The cash people always have to wait. The card people always skip to the front,’ Cash Welcome coordinator Jason Bryce told Yahoo .
‘This is a big mistake by Coles. Coles is literally pushing us cashless, against our will.
‘Coles can’t guarantee their EFTPOS system is reliable 24/7/365. As soon as an outage hits, bedlam ensues and it’s entirely of their own making.’
Its petition calling for a right to continue to buy food with cash has more than 130,000 signatures.
‘Other nations like the UK, France and USA are protecting cash, now ns are standing up for our right to get our food with cash, if we choose,’ Cash Welcome states.
‘Supermarkets favour cashless transactions. Coles and Woolworths ask customers: ‘cash or card?’
‘People paying with cash (our legal tender) wait longer to use limited numbers of check-outs.’
A growing number of Aussie shoppers are making the transition to cashless transactions