King cash or preferred plastic? Telecom outage sparks debate about cash-less future

Bright and airy, even on a hot, muggy day, the size of the lunch crowd varies at the iconic Tarek's Cafe in Halifax’s north end.

Specializing in Mediterranean food for decades, regular customers know they'll get a good meal.

They also know not to bother bringing their debit or credit cards: the restaurant only accepts cash.

"Cash is king," says owner Tarek Kostek. "Just like what happened the other day: nobody carries cash. They can't go anywhere. They were jammed up.”

For telecom giant Rogers, Friday's network outage was a nightmare scenario, impacting Canadians from coast to coast.

Communication and banking services were knocked out for millions, with concerns even some 9-11 calls weren't getting through.

Ordered yesterday by the CRTC to explain what happened, Rogers has pledged to reimburse customers for the lost service.

"I think Friday was quite scary for consumers," business professor Ed McHugh told CTV Atlantic on Wednesday. You go to buy something, and you're told you can't use your card. 60 per cent of purchases in Canada right now are [paid by] credit card or debit," said McHugh.

Although the disruption was undoubtedly costly for businesses, McHugh says we're inching ever closer to a cash-less society, which runs the risk of hurting some more than others.

"If we look at who uses cash, it's people who are lower on the social demographic scale," he said, adding younger people are more likely to rely entirely on plastic and digital money, while seniors tend to carry cash, at least for emergencies.

Shoppers in the parking lot at the Mill Cove Plaza had mixed views on the matter Wednesday.

"My son called me to let me know [about the outage]," said Darlene Mosher. "I didn't know about it. He couldn't use his card and he couldn't work for the day."

Tim Green said his emergency cash in his wallet didn't last long when the machines went down because he needed gas.

"I generally try to keep a hundred-dollar bill in there, and after last Friday, of course, with debits being down, it was spent," said Green.

"I do carry cash now. I keep something somewhere where I can access it," said Cory Stone.

Retiree Tom Courtney says he also tries to carry a bit of money in case he needs it.

"It actually scares the heck out of me when I think about it," says Courtney. "We go every day, day to day, just tapping your Visa or your Interac, and all of a sudden, if you haven't got it, it makes you realize how much we depend on the computer industry."

Back at Tarek's, where cash is still king, the discussion is largely academic, although he does try to accommodate customers who may not be aware.

"I do have an ATM machine, but hardly anyone uses it because it costs $1.50," says Kostek.

And depending on the day, it might be best to have at least that in your pocket, rather than on a card that doesn't work.