In a day when credit card debt is at an all-time high and paying with “plastic” is as common as driving a car or checking email, Americans are renewing their affinity for cash.
The new Coinstar National Currency Poll on economic trends reveals that nearly a quarter of Americans report using cash more often to pay for purchases than they did just one year ago. Reasons cited include helping to manage budgets and control credit card debt. In addition, more than 60 percent of Americans polled said they will be changing their financial plans for 2009 due to difficult economic times.
Americans Use of Cash: 23% of Americans reported using cash more often to pay for purchases compared to one year ago.
More Budget Conscious: 84% of respondents who reported using cash more often than one year ago to pay for purchases said this was to help control spending and manage their budgets. Six years ago when poll respondents who used cash more often were asked the same question (Coinstar National Currency Poll Dec. 2002), only 46% said they were using cash for this same reason.
Americans Embrace Change: Nearly four in 10 Americans (36%) say they value loose change now more than they did a year ago.
Cashing in on Change: 66% of Americans say they tend to accumulate loose change. And of those who accumulate change, 32% say they are recycling or cashing in their change more now than a year ago.
Fun or Serious Money? Even in difficult economic times, Americans are still looking for a little fun. Nearly half (47%) of poll respondents say they plan to use their accumulated change for savings, but 46% also say they plan to spend it on fun purchases.
Financial Plans in Flux: Its clear that Americans are looking closely at their financial plans more than ever with 62% saying that the softer economy is causing them to change their plans for 2009. This compares to only 35% of Americans polled in 2001 (Coinstar National Currency Poll Dec. 2001) who said they planned to change their financial plans in 2002.
About the Coinstar Economic Trends Poll
The Coinstar Economic Trends Survey was conducted between Nov. 5th and 10th, 2008 using random digit dialing of listed and unlisted numbers. Quotas are set to ensure reliable and accurate representation of the total U.S. population ages 18 and over. Results of any sample are subject to sampling variation. The magnitude of the variation is measurable and is affected by the number of interviews and the level of the percentages expressing the results. In this particular study, the chances are 95 in 100 that a survey result does not vary, plus or minus, by more than 3.1 percentage points from the result that would be obtained if interviews had been conducted with all persons in the universe represented by the sample.
