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Is this a uniquely US issue, and if so, why? Other countries have enacted similar lockdowns, wouldn't a coin shortage show up elsewhere given similar circumstan

Is this a uniquely US issue, and if so, why? Other countries have enacted similar lockdowns, wouldn't a coin shortage show up elsewhere given similar circumstances?

lottin 6y ago
It's not unique to the US. Last month I was at a shop in Barcelona, Spain, and the shopkeeper told me she was glad I was paying with coins because they were running out of them.
- 13of40 6y ago
  Did you get a sense for whether the higher denomination coins like €1 and €2 are getting impacted as much as lower ones? I'm trying to think of a reason that this effect would be coin-specific and not just, for instance, a function of the denomination.
jedberg 6y ago
In Europe it is generally cheaper as a merchant to take credit vs cash, because they have low credit processing fees. Because of this they take credit for pretty much any transaction. In the US, it's not uncommon to see places only take credit for purchases over $20, especially restaurants.
- robk 6y ago
  Have you been to Germany? Good luck with getting any cards accepted. And I think you misuse credit for debit - in UK many online retailers only accept debit cards and until the lockdown many mom and pops still really seemed to hate getting out that card machine.
  - jedberg 6y ago
    Yeah Germany is a strange outlier. They have all the tech but just don’t trust it I guess? And yes I used credit as a shorthand for debit/credit.
  - Symbiote 6y ago
    I lived in the UK for decades, and I don't recall a place that only accepted debit cards. The fees are slightly lower for debit vs credit cards, but they're low for both types of card. Plenty of places in Europe don't accept AmEx, it still has high fees. It's true that Germans prefer cash, but that's not necessarily because of the cost of processing cards. Most supermarkets accept cards, but the average German uses a card slightly more than once a week. https://www.euro-area-statistics.org/classic/payment-statistics?lg=en https://www.euro-area-statistics.org/classic/payment-statist...
- vinay427 6y ago
  This minimum card payment is not uncommon in Switzerland at mom-and-pop shops, in my experience. Chain stores and larger businesses always accept card payments, but I still need cash once in a while. I haven't actually seen this in restaurants in the US in a long time, although I have at some other small businesses, so maybe it's also somewhat regional.
  - hocuspocus 6y ago
    Payment networks are relatively expensive in Switzerland and some contracts still charge a flat fee + percentage on every transaction, that's why you see these minimums at bakery shops and the like. Hopefully they'll eventually go away.
- chrisdhal 6y ago
  > In the US, it's not uncommon to see places only take credit for purchases over $20, especially restaurants. This must be semi-regional because it's definitely not the case in the Minneapolis area (or the Midwest in general as far as I've seen). Even mom and pop restaurants will gladly take your credit card. If it exists at all, the minimum I've seen is $5, I've never seen a $20 minimum (not saying it doesn't exist, but it's definitely not "common"). Of course, the US is a huge place, so it definitely could be a regional thing.
  - 83 6y ago
    I've seen a few $20 minimums in Wisconsin, but its certainly not the norm. Usually if there's a minimum it's $10 around here.

Is this a uniquely US issue, and if so, why? Other countries have enacted similar lockdowns, wouldn't a coin shortage show up elsewhere given similar circumstances?

lottin 6y ago

It's not unique to the US. Last month I was at a shop in Barcelona, Spain, and the shopkeeper told me she was glad I was paying with coins because they were running out of them.

13of40 6y ago
Did you get a sense for whether the higher denomination coins like €1 and €2 are getting impacted as much as lower ones? I'm trying to think of a reason that this effect would be coin-specific and not just, for instance, a function of the denomination.

jedberg 6y ago

In Europe it is generally cheaper as a merchant to take credit vs cash, because they have low credit processing fees. Because of this they take credit for pretty much any transaction. In the US, it's not uncommon to see places only take credit for purchases over $20, especially restaurants.

robk 6y ago
Have you been to Germany? Good luck with getting any cards accepted. And I think you misuse credit for debit - in UK many online retailers only accept debit cards and until the lockdown many mom and pops still really seemed to hate getting out that card machine.
- jedberg 6y ago
  Yeah Germany is a strange outlier. They have all the tech but just don’t trust it I guess? And yes I used credit as a shorthand for debit/credit.
- Symbiote 6y ago
  I lived in the UK for decades, and I don't recall a place that only accepted debit cards. The fees are slightly lower for debit vs credit cards, but they're low for both types of card. Plenty of places in Europe don't accept AmEx, it still has high fees. It's true that Germans prefer cash, but that's not necessarily because of the cost of processing cards. Most supermarkets accept cards, but the average German uses a card slightly more than once a week. https://www.euro-area-statistics.org/classic/payment-statistics?lg=en https://www.euro-area-statistics.org/classic/payment-statist...
vinay427 6y ago
This minimum card payment is not uncommon in Switzerland at mom-and-pop shops, in my experience. Chain stores and larger businesses always accept card payments, but I still need cash once in a while. I haven't actually seen this in restaurants in the US in a long time, although I have at some other small businesses, so maybe it's also somewhat regional.
- hocuspocus 6y ago
  Payment networks are relatively expensive in Switzerland and some contracts still charge a flat fee + percentage on every transaction, that's why you see these minimums at bakery shops and the like. Hopefully they'll eventually go away.
chrisdhal 6y ago
> In the US, it's not uncommon to see places only take credit for purchases over $20, especially restaurants. This must be semi-regional because it's definitely not the case in the Minneapolis area (or the Midwest in general as far as I've seen). Even mom and pop restaurants will gladly take your credit card. If it exists at all, the minimum I've seen is $5, I've never seen a $20 minimum (not saying it doesn't exist, but it's definitely not "common"). Of course, the US is a huge place, so it definitely could be a regional thing.
- 83 6y ago
  I've seen a few $20 minimums in Wisconsin, but its certainly not the norm. Usually if there's a minimum it's $10 around here.