O2 does its bit to stamp out cash

Tradesmen have been offered an easy way to accept credit and debit cards – as long as they have a smartphone or tablet.

Back in July David Gauke, a Treasury minister, told The Daily Telegraph that home owners who pay workmen in cash were aiding them to evade VAT and income tax. Naturally there was an outcry from the harder-working sections of the population who pointed out that cash was legal tender and people were perfectly entitled to offer and accept buts of paper and metal with the Governor of the Bank of England’s signature on it.

Which brings us neatly into the news about O2’s new mobile point-of-sale service (mPOS) which should give Mr Gauke a pleasurable shiver up his spine.

O2 says: mPOS makes accepting card payments a breeze for retailers and customers. A low-cost chip & PIN Pad accessory is connected to the tradesman/retailer’s existing Smartphone or tablet via Bluetooth. A free eMerit app downloaded on the mobile or tablet manages the card payment transaction, and then sends the customer a receipt via email and/or SMS if required”.

In plain English this means that any handyman, window-cleaner, plumber etc will be fast running out of excuses not to take a cheque (as long as they have an Android or BlackBerry device, with the iOS version coming soon).

Sandra Alzetta, Senior Vice President of Mobile at Visa Europe said: “This latest innovation is an exciting partnership for Visa, O2 and Global Payments. We want to unlock the value of electronic payments for smaller retailers – by getting this device into the hands of tradesmen, home-based businesses and market stall operators, we believe we can help them sell more products and services to consumers who forgot to withdraw enough cash.”

Or as David Gauke and his mates at HMRC might say “lovely, jubbly”.