Pub chain changes the way food and drink is bought and some punters are unhappy

17 May 2023 , 20:18

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Greene King are trialling cashless-only payments - and some punters are not happy (Image: Bloomberg via Getty Images)

Punters have been left up in arms after a popular pub chain changed the way food and drinks are ordered.

Greene King will trial card-only payments at a select number of its premises across the UK - meaning no cash payments will be accepted at the bar.

Certain pubs where the majority of payments are made by card have already started to test out the policy, according to the chain.

But some unhappy customers have vowed to take their business elsewhere, saying they should be able to have the choice and that the move disproportionately impacts older pub-goers.

The Travellers Rest, in Mapperley Plains, Nottinghamshire, is one of the pubs involved in the trial - but some punters say they aren't happy.

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Greene King says a select number of pubs will only accept card payments under the scheme (Getty Images)

One of them said to Nottinghamshire Live: "We are an older couple of regulars that choose to pay cash and now, if we want to go, we have no choice. I personally think that is a mistake on their part. I should have the choice.

"We eat out a lot and no where else we go does this. It is likely we will go elsewhere in future. It's such a shame."

Mr Da'Ball, a 65-year-old auditor in the licensed trade, meanwhile urged bosses to have a rethink, telling the newspaper: "I know the younger generation does card a lot, but my son-in-law, when he goes out he daren't look in his bank the next day as he's scared what he might have spent. I understand that a lot pay on card, I just want the choice."

Some unhappy customers said using cash helped people keep track of their spending (Universal Images Group via Getty Images)

Greene King currently operate around 2,700 pubs restaurants and hotels across the country.

Some people also took to Twitter to point out that keeping cash was a cost-of-living issue, as it allowed people to keep track of their spending.

One told the chain: "Are you aware that many people only use cash at the moment as it's easier to monitor cash flow in these hard times?"

Others however suggested that people should learn to move with the times, as they said: "Unfortunately things change and it's something that people need to get used to.. If my 90-year-old mother-in-law can use cashless and learn to pay on her phone then others should be able to."

A spokesperson for Greene King told Nottinghamshire Live: “We’re undertaking a trial in a small number of our pubs where card payments make up more than 90% of all transactions. This is a trial and we have not made a business decision to permanently go cashless in this small number of pubs, or any other of our pubs, at this stage.”

Benedict Tetzlaff-Deas