Debit Card Acceptance Influences Consumer Shopping Decisions

In fact: - Nearly two-thirds (63 percent) of respondents say their feelings toward a store would be negatively impacted if a merchant stopped accepting debit cards - About half (51 percent) indicate they would consider walking out of a store without making a purchase if their debit cards were not accepted The findings are particularly noteworthy in light of the class-action antitrust lawsuit brought against MasterCard and Visa by merchants in the United States, settled in 2003, affording merchants new options to limit acceptance of payments cards for purchases. The survey results expand on findings of an American Bankers Association (ABA) study noting electronic payments have surpassed cash and checks as consumers preferred in-store payment method. Debit cards notched the largest growth in use accounting for 31 percent of 2003 in-store payments, up from 21 percent in 1999, according to the ABA. Consumers Identify Reasons for Choosing Debit According to the survey, convenience, security and ease-of-use are significant factors behind consumers choice to use debit cards. Additional findings include: - 82 percent of adults using debit cards note convenience and safety to be extremely/very important attributes, as opposed to carrying cash - 77 percent considered debits transaction speed and ability to save time at the checkout counter extremely/very important - 84 percent of debit cardholders who go online feel it is extremely/very important that their debit cards can be used at millions of merchant locations, including non brick and mortar sites such as Internet, catalog and phone-based retailers - It is important to 79 percent of debit cardholders that debit cards are easier to use than writing checks