E-wallet savvy senior citizens

Trio show not all elderly people struggle with eWallet

PETALING JAYA: Not all senior citizens are clueless about making cashless payments. Three seniors who were interviewed disproved the myth that the elderly are less savvy than their children or grandchildren when it comes to such payments.

They showed that while shopping, they are equally adept at paying with an eWallet as with cash.

Retired human resources manager Lynette Ng, 63, was happy to adopt e-payment. Her husband got her started by downloading the app for her, and she has not stopped using it since.

“Now, I use the eWallet to pay for groceries because products are often offered at lower prices for cashless payments.”

Ng said she was sold on adopting eWallet when the previous government offered a RM30 incentive.

“I like using it a lot.”

She said she loves the scan feature and is relieved that she no longer has to bring a lot of cash when going out shopping.

The only snag, Ng said, is that she often forgets to reload her eWallet, forcing her to use conventional payment methods such as credit cards.

“I find reloading a hassle, so I sometimes prefer using credit cards.”

Another retiree, who wished to be known only as Madam Helen, 66, said moving into e-payment was a breeze.

“I read about it in the newspapers and decided to try it. I was further tempted by the RM30 incentive, so I downloaded the app and now I use it a lot.”

Thanks to her, some of her children have also begun to use eWallet.

Helen pays for groceries, packed lunches and vegetables with eWallet whenever possible because “there’s just so much savings and cashback”.

“It’s like using a credit card to pay for small purchases.”

She is even encouraging her friends to start using eWallet.

The only time Helen hit a snag was when the app did not work when she tried to make a purchase, so she ended up paying in cash. But she later discovered that the amount had also been deducted from her eWallet.

“The merchant gladly refunded the money,” she said, adding she has not faced such a problem since.

A retired schoolteacher, Madam Ma, 62, said she uses eWallet to buy groceries at the supermarket and pay her telecommunication bills.

“So far, I have not faced any problems using it. Just scan and pay, it’s that easy.”

She got to know about eWallet through TV and was attracted by the RM30 incentive.