EFTPOS

One of the things that took us by surprise when we moved to New Zealand was EFTPOS. This is a method of direct debit banking, very similar to Switch/Maestro in the UK, where the bank issues a plastic card that can be used to pay for purchases at the point of sale. If the money is in your bank account then the sale will go through, and if you don't have money then there will be a problem, so it's not like a credit card, it's just a debit card. We were already familiar with that sort of technology, but in the UK and Ireland it is generally only used if a person doesn't have cash on them for some reason, or if it's a purchase of at least £10. Many retailers there set a minimum spend for that sort of purchase because it costs them money to process it.

However, in New Zealand, everybody uses EFTPOS for just about everything. Buying a cup of coffee? Use your card. Paying for a magazine? Use your card. Out for a team lunch at work? Everybody files up to the till and pays for their own individual meal, using their EFTPOS cards. People just don't seem to carry cash at all here.

It's not all good, though. I was in a supermarket a couple of months ago and there was a power cut, which knocked out all the EFTPOS terminals, and of course almost nobody had cash with them. Massive queues formed at the bank machine outside, and it took me 20 minutes to get out of there even though there was only one lady in front of me. (By the way, I had cash!) So there are pros and cons to this way of purchasing goods. I try to always have at least one note in my purse for emergencies, but it's easy to get out of that habit, and then we find ourselves hoking around behind the sofa cushions for enough money to pay the pizza guy when we get a delivery!