Americans Using Cash to Manage Budgets and Control Credit Card Spending

BELLEVUE, Wash. (Business Wire EON/PRWEB ) November 24, 2008 -- In a day when credit card debt is at an all-time high and paying with “plastic” is as common as driving a car or checking email, Americans are renewing their affinity for cash.

The new Coinstar National Currency Poll on economic trends reveals that nearly a quarter of Americans report using cash more often to pay for purchases than they did just one year ago. Reasons cited include helping to manage budgets and control credit card debt. In addition, more than 60 percent of Americans polled said they will be changing their financial plans for 2009 due to difficult economic times.

Americans’ Use of Cash. Twenty-three percent (23%) of Americans reported using cash more often to pay for purchases compared to one year ago.

• More Budget Conscious. Eighty-four percent (84%) of respondents who reported using cash more often than one year ago to pay for purchases said this was to help control spending and manage their budgets. Six years ago when poll respondents who used cash more often were asked the same question (Coinstar National Currency Poll Dec. 2002), only 46% said they were using cash for this same reason.
• Worries About Credit Card Debt. Nearly seven in 10 Americans (69%) who use cash more often say it’s because they are concerned about credit card debt. This compares to 48 percent in 2002, nearly a 50% increase.

Americans Embrace Change. Nearly four in 10 Americans (36%) say they value loose change now more than they did a year ago.

• Cashing in on Change. Two-thirds (66%) of Americans say they tend to accumulate loose change. And of those who accumulate change, 32 percent say they are recycling or cashing in their change more now than a year ago.
• Young Americans More Coin Conscious. Forty-two percent (42%) of respondents ages 18-34 who accumulate change say they are cashing in change more now than a year ago, compared to only 26 percent of Americans age 55 and older.
• Fun or Serious Money? Even in difficult economic times, Americans are still looking for a little fun. Nearly half (47%) of poll respondents say they plan to use their accumulated change for savings, but 46 percent also say they plan to spend it on fun purchases.

Financial Plans in Flux. It’s clear that Americans are looking closely at their financial plans more than ever with 62 percent saying that the softer economy is causing them to change their plans for 2009. This compares to only 35 percent of Americans polled in 2001 (Coinstar National Currency Poll Dec. 2001) who said they planned to change their financial plans in 2002.

About the Coinstar Economic Trends Poll

The Coinstar Economic Trends Survey was conducted by Kelton Research between November 5^th and 10^th, 2008 using random digit dialing of listed and unlisted numbers. Quotas are set to ensure reliable and accurate representation of the total U.S. population ages 18 and over. Results of any sample are subject to sampling variation. The magnitude of the variation is measurable and is affected by the number of interviews and the level of the percentages expressing the results. In this particular study, the chances are 95 in 100 that a survey result does not vary, plus or minus, by more than 3.1 percentage points from the result that would be obtained if interviews had been conducted with all persons in the universe represented by the sample.

About Kelton Research

Kelton Research is a full service global insights firm with offices in Los Angeles and New York, and is America’s fastest growing National Market Research Consultancy. Serving as strategic partner to more than 100 of the Fortune 500 and thousands of smaller companies and organizations, Kelton utilizes a wide range of qualitative and quantitative methodologies to drive tactical recommendations for clients. For more information about Kelton’s services, please call 1-888-8-KELTON or visit www.keltonresearch.com.

About Coinstar, Inc.

Coinstar, Inc. (NASDAQ:CSTR) is a multi-national company offering a range of 4th Wall^™ solutions for the retailers’ front of store consisting of self-service coin counting, electronic payment solutions, entertainment services, money transfer and self-service DVD rental. The company’s products and services can be found at more than 50,000 retail locations including supermarkets, drug stores, mass merchants, financial institutions, convenience stores and restaurants.

^* All decimals are rounded to the nearest percentage point. This may result in certain numerical totals adding up to slightly more or slightly less than 100%.

MULTIMEDIA GALLERY

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