Pub customers increasingly 'flexing the plastic'
Despite concerns over rising personal debts, UK pub customers are increasingly 'flexing the plastic' when visiting their favourite watering holes, according to figures from statistical consultants APACS.
While many pubs still demand a minimum spend to enable payment via a credit card, the use of plastic in the nation's boozers has been rising, unlike credit card spending on bigger ticket items.
APACS spokesman Mark Bowerman said: "The overall trend in credit card spending in the UK retail economy has been flat over the past 12 months." However, spending on credit cards in UK pubs rose 35 per cent in December last year, while for 2006 as a whole card spending rose 23 per cent rise versus the previous year.
The volume of credit card transactions in pubs has also increased significantly. December 2006 saw more than 965,000 credit card transactions, up 32.5 per cent, with a value of more than £57m, while taking last year as a whole, the number of credit card transactions rose 18 per cent on 2005's figures to 11.1m.
Meanwhile debit card usage - effectively cash in a plastic form - has also mushroomed, says Bowerman. Last December more than 2.8m debit card transactions were made in the country's pubs, up 45 per cent on the previous year, while the total value of these also rose 45 per cent, to £80m.
The number of licensed trade debit card transactions in 2006 rose to 832.8m, up 34 per cent on 2005, with a value of £31.3m, also up 34 per cent.
While the amount spent in UK pubs using cards is small compared to overall sales in the on-trade - in the region of £22bn a year - the figures reveal that consumers are looking at alternatives to cash, as long as the means to do so are cost-effective.
