Discussing the findings of the report, The Independent said that debit card usage had increased fourfold since 1999 - ‘four times as fast as spending’. Mike Bowman, head of policy and markets at the payment council said: “Although cash won't disappear in our lifetime, the continuing payments revolution will make it an even smaller part of our spending.”

The Council added that while 21 billion consumer payments were in cash in 2009, four-fifths of them were for amounts less than £10. In a point relevant to the vending industry, Bowman added that since chip and PIN speeded up transactions, “it’s become socially acceptable to buy small items by card now, for example in a sandwich shop or pub.”

The Council revealed that by 2018 one in four of all transactions is forecast to be made on debit card, up from just one in 20 in 1999. The Independent suggested that contactless payment for small purchases had the potential to drive debit card usage even higher, a view supported by Bowman, who said that there was a “huge opportunity for us to replace billions of these with a quick swipe past a card reader.”

The cashless option in Vending

According to the European Vending Association, most of the vending industry in Europe is coin-operated. However, cashless readers are fitted in about 10% of machines in Europe and are expected to continue to grow slowly but surely. “Cashless payments have not only become another payment option, but they have established themselves on the vending market as a highly sophisticated and multi-functional means of payment. Today, consumers increasingly expect to use more payment options in retail environments. The Cashless Committee creates the right environment to make this technically possible. It is then up to the operators to meet consumers’ demands for more payment options in those environments where it makes economic sense.”

Different ways to pay

Quintus Systems, a leading manufacturer of cashless payment systems, has introduced a smart new way to automatically distribute and control the free issue of personal protection equipment (PPE) using an automated dispense system driven by its own tailor-made EPnet software.

The system works with the installation of a modern, glass-fronted merchandiser that is configured to dispense PPE. The machine can be stocked with the most frequently needed items such as protective eyewear, safety gloves, dust masks and ear defenders, but could also include other items at management discretion – engineering consumables, perhaps or essential tools and computer peripherals.

Staff use the machine to draw all the protective equipment they need using a card or fob, which is often the very same device that staff use for security and building access, without any modification. Because PPE is dispensed automatically, there is no labour cost associated with the issue, no payment to reclaim and each allocation is recorded against a staff member’s name, so total control and accountability is assured.

Quintus Systems’ Managing Director, Peter Quinney comments: “The EPnet system was initially developed with the hospitality market in mind but, by removing many unnecessary features and focusing on the specific requirements of controlled issue PPE, the system is tailor-made for this market. When you take into account the drawbacks of a manual system such as shrinkage and the labour costs of manual issue, the Quintus system will pay for itself in a very short time.”

VMC’s Metro cashless reader is compatible with Multi Drop Bus (MDB), Executive (protocol ‘A’), and priceline vending machines. It is available in contact and contactless key or card versions. The large backlit LCD graphics display personally welcomes each key/card user, and provides a clear reading of available credit and subsidies. With the addition of a coin mechanism, the reader will support ‘on-machine’ key/card revaluation, as well as coin pay vends (if required).

Uvend is a Uniware developed vending controller with an installed embedded PC inside the vending machine which provides ‘perfect control over your vending machines’. By using a PC controller it is able to provide all the functionality available at any point of sale terminal with regard to free issues, salary sacrifice, discounts, loyalty points and promotions. Installation is a fast process as the company only needs to add a card reader to the outside of the vending machine and connect into the MDB or executive circuit utilising the inbuilt display. Cash can be used together with the module using the original coin mechanism as an option to provide cash purchases.

From chip and pin to contactless cards, pre-loaded cards to keys, technology is evolving to offer a range of convenient payment options in a variety of locations. And the benefits don’t stop there, the data generated by purchasing with cashless cards for example, allows for improvements to be made to products and services as a clearer picture of the consumer is created. That said, machines in consumer environments that continue to offer the coin option are vital for those individuals who still prefer to pay by cash.

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