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Almost nobody pays for anything with cash in the UK anymore. I think this is an illusion. Sure, if you're going into almost any shop it will accept other paym

Almost nobody pays for anything with cash in the UK anymore. I think this is an illusion. Sure, if you're going into almost any shop it will accept other payment methods and most people will use them, particularly at the moment. Similarly, ordering anything online isn't likely to be cash-on-delivery. However, there are still reasons people might need or prefer to pay or be paid in cash, only one of which is "I'm a dodgy tradesman evading tax". For example, we've used a few local services for things like cleaning or gardening. They often like to be paid in cash, at least for the first visit or two, so everyone immediately knows it's all above board. This is common IME even if they might be happy to be paid (or even prefer to be paid) electronically once they get to know you. Is the use of cash declining here? Certainly. Is it negligible? Not even close. Is it still useful or even essential? Sometimes, yes.

chrisseaton 6y ago
> They often like to be paid in cash, at least for the first visit or two, so everyone immediately knows it's all above board. Paying people in cash seems like the exact opposite of an indicator of everything being above board.
- Silhouette 6y ago
  Not really. It's in your hand, right now. It can't be disputed later and retrospectively yanked back out of your bank account, or not paid out to you in the first place if you use an intermediary payment service. These are not hypothetical problems. It's also a traditional sign of honesty, and a convenient way for someone who has provided very good service to be tipped without making a big deal of it ("Keep the change"), and both of those things can be important in these kinds of situations.
  - chrisseaton 6y ago
    > It's also a traditional sign of honesty Well I accept your experience, but in my experience asking for cash is a traditional sign of dishonesty and tax evasion. Why do you think they always offer a hushed discount for cash? A professional tradesman invoices after and then accepts a bank transfer. Asking for a wad of banknotes is grubby.
    - Silhouette 6y ago
      Why do you think they always offer a hushed discount for cash? FWIW, I'm not sure I've ever actually encountered that in my entire life. It seems like one of those folk tales governments tell when they want to get more money out of a group who are an easy target. After all, can you prove you only charged that nice couple what you said on your accounts for fitting out their new bathroom, Mr Plumber? A professional tradesman invoices after and then accepts a bank transfer. Sure, and when we've had tradesmen in that's almost always what we've done too. But again, in my entire life, I don't think I've ever received a paper invoice from a cleaner, or a gardener, or a neighbour's teenager who was childminding, or the friendly retiree around the corner who is an ace at fixing bikes. Not unless they were working through an agency and it was the agency handling the billing, anyway. Not everything is big enough and formal enough to need invoicing and professional payment tools. Normal people still pay for plenty of stuff with cash around here. Just not usually in shops (online or bricks 'n' mortar) or for big things.

chrisseaton 6y ago

> They often like to be paid in cash, at least for the first visit or two, so everyone immediately knows it's all above board. Paying people in cash seems like the exact opposite of an indicator of everything being above board.

Silhouette 6y ago
Not really. It's in your hand, right now. It can't be disputed later and retrospectively yanked back out of your bank account, or not paid out to you in the first place if you use an intermediary payment service. These are not hypothetical problems. It's also a traditional sign of honesty, and a convenient way for someone who has provided very good service to be tipped without making a big deal of it ("Keep the change"), and both of those things can be important in these kinds of situations.
- chrisseaton 6y ago
  > It's also a traditional sign of honesty Well I accept your experience, but in my experience asking for cash is a traditional sign of dishonesty and tax evasion. Why do you think they always offer a hushed discount for cash? A professional tradesman invoices after and then accepts a bank transfer. Asking for a wad of banknotes is grubby.
  - Silhouette 6y ago
    Why do you think they always offer a hushed discount for cash? FWIW, I'm not sure I've ever actually encountered that in my entire life. It seems like one of those folk tales governments tell when they want to get more money out of a group who are an easy target. After all, can you prove you only charged that nice couple what you said on your accounts for fitting out their new bathroom, Mr Plumber? A professional tradesman invoices after and then accepts a bank transfer. Sure, and when we've had tradesmen in that's almost always what we've done too. But again, in my entire life, I don't think I've ever received a paper invoice from a cleaner, or a gardener, or a neighbour's teenager who was childminding, or the friendly retiree around the corner who is an ace at fixing bikes. Not unless they were working through an agency and it was the agency handling the billing, anyway. Not everything is big enough and formal enough to need invoicing and professional payment tools. Normal people still pay for plenty of stuff with cash around here. Just not usually in shops (online or bricks 'n' mortar) or for big things.