The greed of VISA and the big banks is driving a return to transacting in cash. The fee is just too high to ignore.
- The convenient gas station has cash pricing.
- The vendors at the farmers’ market take cash or charge a fee for using a credit card.
- The car repair shop charges a 4% surcharge for credit card payments (they accept checks).
- The plumber charges a surcharge for a credit card payment.
I earned my money and I paid taxes on it. I’m not going to pay an additional charge to spend it. I use cash for local businesses. I’d rather they get the 3% rather than the bank. I don’t care about Home Despot and Walmart. Residents complain about 9% sales tax. No one talks about the 3% that the merchants mark everything up to cover the cost of credit card purchases. It’s a sorry reflection on our financial system that “cash is king” in 2023.