I Taught My Non-Tech Savvy Parent How To Go Cashless For A Week. Here’s What Happened

My mum is NOT a fan of cashless transactions. If there is ever anything tech-related, my dad would step in to assist her, and occasionally I would too. Since she, like many other Malaysians, loves purchasing items online, I figured that if she had learned how to perform these transactions by herself, she would find it more convenient. Plus, she'll be able to buy me more things ;)

Here's what my mum had to say before embarking on her cashless journey:

"I am not used to going cashless, but I heard that it is convenient. Sometimes it is a hassle when I want to make an online transfer but I only have cash in hand. But I also find that back in my time we always had some leftover cash and coins in our pockets. Nowadays a lot of transactions are made online so I am excited to find out how its like to go completely cashless. If I find that it makes life easier, I will consider sticking to it."

"Shiffa asked me to buy groceries online, so I just added a few items to start small since this is the first time. I added a few things like bread, tuna, and instant noodles. But then when we reached the payment part, the cashless option was to pay via FPX bank transfer. When it asked for my details, I completely forgot what it was! Then we had to rush push and get a new password. After going through a few verification steps with the bank to change my password, I did the transfer. And then the groceries arrived."

"Every month I have a maid come in and do the cleaning services around the house e.g vacuuming, mopping, and cleaning the bathrooms. Usually I will give her cash after she is done. This time around I had to ask her for her bank details so I can transfer her pay. To my surprise, she said that an account number was not necessary, as I could transfer to her phone number via DuitNow. She told me she actually prefers online transfers as she doesn't have to carry around so much cash."

"I decided to get everyone at home some ice cream pints from Baskin Robbins. I asked the cashier if they accepted cashless payments. I am glad they do because I would hate to go looking for an ATM in a busy place like Uptown in the afternoon! All I had to do was wave my MyDebit ATM card. Easy peasy."

"I have been wanting to get Coway for the longest time. When it finally arrived, we had many options to pay for it monthly. Since I tend to forget these things, I chose to set up DirectDebit for the recurring payments so that it will automatically deduct from my bank account each month."

"Usually my husband takes care of it but I decided to give it a try and see how it was done. There were actually a few ways to do it because behind the bill they listed a few ways to pay, so Shiffa showed me how to do it using the JomPAY option. It was okay, because since it was listed as an option in my bank account, I just put in the details like biller code, reference number, and the total amount. I also saved the biller under my Favourites so I don’t need to key in the biller code and reference number again next time." 

"Since I missed the 11.11 sale, it was my chance to buy during the December sale. I added the self-cleaning vacuum, silicone ice cube trays, baking trays, and a new pair of oven mitts in my cart. I also added in a car phone holder for Shiffa so she would stop driving with a phone in her hand. At this point I was already familiar with using banking transactions, so it was quite straightforward. Now all I have to do is wait for my things to arrive."

"Shafiq was feeling unwell, so I brought him to Klinik Kesihatan. We went early in the morning to escape the crowd. Anyway, Shiffa reminded me to use cashless means to pay, so I used my ATM card and just like before, I waved it at the POS terminal. Since Shafiq is autistic, he gets restless in public easily so I am glad we didn't have to wait too long." 

"Going cashless for a week was an eye-opening experience. To be honest since I am so used to using cash before this, switching to cashless is not easy as there are things to remember like bank passwords and website details. However I am glad I tried cashless transactions. It is convenient and easy. It reduces the hassle of withdrawing money from the bank."

Here are 14 government agencies (among other agencies) that now accept cashless payments:

1. Ministry of Health (MOH)

2. Road Transport Department Malaysia (JPJ)

3. National Registration Department (JPN)

4. Royal Malaysian Customs Department (JKDM)

5. Immigration Department of Malaysia (JIM)

6. Royal Malaysian Police (PDRM)

7. Inland Revenue Board of Malaysia (LHDN)

8. Employees Provident Fund (EPF)

9. Pertubuhan Keselamatan Sosial (PERKESO)

10. Local Government Department (LGD) through the Ministry of Housing and Local Government (KPKT)

11. Fire and Rescue Department of Malaysia through KPKT

12. Malaysian Department of Insolvency

13. Federal Court of Malaysia

14. Department of Survey and Mapping Malaysia (JUPEM)

You can use JomPAY to pay your bills online; anytime, anywhere. No longer will you have to wait in long queues for your turn, as this super efficient payment method is offered by most banks in Malaysia.

Pro Tip: Use this feature for paying your phone, water, and electricity bills on the spot!

When you make online transactions, FPX facilitates the process that allows real-time debiting of customer’s Internet banking account of multiple banks. You can use online banking to make payments from your Current, Savings or Credit Card account.

Pro Tip: Use this when you shop online for clothes, accessories, gadgets, and anything else your heart desires!

DirectDebit is used when you want to make a regular or a recurring payment. It is a convenient and efficient method to collect recurring payments, as you can set automated payments directly from your bank account. 

Pro Tip: If you have any recurring payments for car instalments or insurance, use DirectDebit and set it to deduct your balance every month!

If you have a debit card, you don't need to search for ATM machines anymore! More than 200,000 retail outlets throughout Malaysia accept MyDebit ATM card, as all you need to do in enter your PIN number or wave at the Point-of-Sale (POS) terminals when making a payment. 

Pro Tip: Use MyDebit ATM card whenever you buy groceries, eat out, or when purchasing items from stores!

It's just as simple as that! One transaction from your end equals to one entry, so the more cashless transactions you perform, the higher your chances of being selected as a lucky winner!

Here are the monthly prizes up for grabs:  

- Main prize – 1 x Proton X70 worth RM110,000

- Second prize – 1 x Proton Saga worth RM40,000

- Third prize – 1 x Yamaha Y15ZR worth RM11,000

- Fourth prize – 5 x Smartphones worth RM1,100

So the next time you're about to make any government-related payments, take the opportunity to use one of the various cashless methods available such as JomPAY, FPX, MyDebit, and DirectDebit and you might get lucky!