More and more shops and catering establishments no longer want to accept cash. Is that legally allowed? Quite annoying if you want to get rid of those loose coins in your wallet. And what about the reverse: merchants who forbid you to pay with your bank card? We found out what your rights are as a customer.
During the pandemic, many traders started refusing cash for health reasons. “Some sellers continue to apply that rule,” says Laura Clays of Testaankoop. “Also because a payment by card is a lot faster, because you don’t have to count change.”
“However, European law stipulates that cash is legal tender. This means that you have to be able to use it anywhere,” says Clays. “According to the FSMA, the Belgian Financial Services and Markets Authority, it is therefore prohibited for a trader to refuse cash. Except in a few specific situations.”
Which specific situations? Above all, the amount of what you buy must be ‘in reasonable proportion’ to the means of payment. A trader may refuse a 500 euro note, for example, if you want to pay for a bag of chips with it. In addition, as a customer you are only allowed to pay a maximum of 3,000 euros in cash to prevent money laundering and possible counterfeit notes.
You can ‘only’ bet a maximum of fifty coins per payment
Traders can also refuse damaged notes. As a customer, you can exchange such a note for a decent copy at the bank or at the National Bank of Belgium, provided that you still own more than half of the note and the value can be read from the number.
The not so popular ‘red’ coins of 1 and 2 cents also remain a valid means of payment. Although you shouldn’t overdo it: you can ‘only’ bet fifty coins per payment.
A seller also has the right to refuse cash in exceptional circumstances. For example, if the neighborhood is experiencing many violent thefts at that time. The trader must then make his choice clearly known in advance, for example via a poster.
Are you not allowed to pay by card? Then the trader is making a mistake in this case
In night shops and smaller neighborhood shops you sometimes still see pieces of paper with “no card under 10 euros” hanging at the cash register. However, since July 2022, every store is obliged to offer the option to pay by electronic means. This does not necessarily have to be a bank card. If you can pay with Payconiq or PayPal, a business also meets the legal obligations.
Depending on the size of the amount, entrepreneurs may also accept a combination of electronic payment methods. For example, you may have to pay under 100 euros with Payconiq and above with card if you do not have cash available.
Is the only electronic way to pay by bank card? Then no restrictions such as minimum amounts or additional costs below a certain limit may be imposed. If that happens, you can here report to the FPS Economy.
Please note: the merchant may complete the payment amount electronically, although he is obliged to clearly display this in his store. For cash money, rounding rules to the nearest 5 cents have applied to the total amount since December 2019.
It is also important to know that payments with meal, eco and consumer vouchers, crypto coins and other virtual currencies are not considered electronic payment methods. Not even if they are done with the card, that is.
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2023-12-28 05:30:11
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