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Credit cards used for 'small transaction spending'
4 Jul 2011

Using debit or credit cards for small transaction spending appears to be becoming the norm, with figures revealing that 56 per cent of Britons do this to buy goods under £10.

According to moneysupermarket.com, this averages out to 3.2 transactions each week, with the typical amount spent reaching £6.34 - the weekly bill for smaller purchases on credit cards is more than £250 million.

As head of banking with the price comparison site Kevin Mountford observed, this is a convenient way of paying for items and "with the onset of contactless technology, getting even easier".

Using a card with NFC technology could help make purchasing less costly goods easier, although Mr Mountford recommended closely monitoring how much is spent as smaller transactions "soon mount up".

It is likely this trend will continue as, according to Pay Your Way, 65 per cent of people do not like carrying large sums of money around - which could lead to a cashless society in the future.