I stopped using contactless – and saved £70 in two weeks

It was the small, thoughtless purchases and subscriptions that were really eating away at my income. So I put my foot down and my contactless away, says Sadhbh O'Sullivan

But, in recent months I have been considering that perhaps the seamless nature of this has been detrimental to my spending. Is it really good to have such ease and speed when trying to budget and keep a lid on expenses? A recent paper based on data from a Chinese bank has found that people spend aboutmore when using contactless, perhaps – if we’re being cynical – part of the reason why banks and retailers welcomed the technology.

I spent my first day setting some ground rules, and scrubbing every avenue of easy spending off my phone. I disabled Apple Pay, deleted all card data off my phone, and deleted the PayPal app. This was the majority, though not the entirety, of the admin needed. Next – an Oyster card. When I travel into work for the rest of those two weeks I feel smug about not spending money as I had already paid for it. The euphoria of ‘free money’ psychology is hard to beat and I realised I had been behaving like travel was free because of the delay in the charge showing up. Despite it always coming through I would look at my balance as though I had truly only spent 10p on my journey and then feel like my silly spend was justified.

One of the first days that week that I’ve not spent any money, I needed to grab some groceries. In a fit of self-congratulation, I decided to add an Easter egg to my shop. What could have been a modest shop of loose potatoes, cherry tomatoes, and a lemon is now £6 more expensive. Having to use my PIN did nothing to stop this impulsive spend.

By the end of the two weeks, I found it easier not to give into impulse. When I go to Boots to buy my, I find I can’t justify adding on a little skincare treat when I’m already spending £25 .

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