NPC: Alternative to cheques must be found for elderly

Thursday, April 8th 2010

Financial reforms aiming to phase out the use of cheques cannot be complicated because this could pose difficulties for older generations.

This is the advice of Dot Gibson, general secretary of the National Pensioners Convention (NPC).

In December last year the Payments Council Board revealed a target date of October 31st 2018 as the close of central cheque clearing.

The body claimed that cheques have been in long-term decline and the closure hopes to prevent confusion and create alternative methods of payment.

But in March the NPC stated it did not support this decision, which seemed to have been made without consulting the elderly.

Ms Gibson said: "We are quite happy to take part in that debate and put our view forward. What we don't want is to wake up and find cheques have gone with no alternative. That would be unacceptable."

And electronic alternatives are not always an option because many pensioners are not connected to the internet.

Ms Gibson explained there must be a paper based system that is recognised by the whole commercial sector to create a more personalised method of payment that the elderly find easy to manage.