CASHLESS transactions have become so common place that people forget, that sometimes you have no option but to use hard cash.

Mr S. from Longford travels to Northern Ireland regularly. He is also a customer of the Irish Permanent and has a Cashere card which he uses in the Republic. "I am disappointed to find that it will not work in ATM machines in Northern Ireland. Are there any plans to extend Cashere to ATM machines in the North? Do any other building societies issue cards which work in Northern Ireland ATMs?" he asks.

A spokesman for the Irish Permanent told Family Money they have no immediate plans to extend the use of Cashere cards here to their ATMs in the North, mainly due to potential administration costs and those associated with currency exchange. Irish Permanent cards can also be used in Hank of Ireland PASS ATMs, but like the Cashere system, which is jointly used by all the building societies, the facility is not available in machines in Northern Ireland.

The Irish Permanent spokesman recommended that our reader contact his branch to inquire about taking out either a VISA credit card or a Enrocheque card, both of which can be used in designated ATM machines in Northern Ireland. Credit and Eurocheque cards each carry higher government charges and can be more expensive to operate, especially credit cards if the monthly statement balance is not cleared.