Almost 50 per cent of transactions will be contactless by the end of next year, according to new research.

A study commissioned by VoucherCodes.co.uk and carried out by the Centre for Retail Research, found that the use of contactless transactions will make up 47 per cent of all UK payments between 2021-2022.

The research suggests that over the same time period cash payments will account for just over one tenth (11 per cent) of all purchases.

The report also reveals that contactless payments are up by nearly a third since the start of the pandemic, when chip & pin payments were still the most popular way to pay.

Meanwhile, forecasts show almost three quarters of payments will be made by card within the next year.

“Covid-19 has forever changed the way consumers spend their money,” said Anita Naik, lifestyle editor at VoucherCodes.co.uk. “With exponential increases in online orders during the pandemic, combined with increased contactless limits and retailers implementing cash bans, people have quickly adapted to relying on contactless payments for the bulk of purchases as a result.”

Naik added: “It remains to be seen whether the government will amend laws relating to legal tender, enabling retailers to permanently refuse to accept cash if they wish.”

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