Although the dangers of overspending with virtual money and incurring surcharges still exist, people who use cashless facilities can enjoy enormous benefits.

One of the major advantages of using plastic money and other electronic modes of payment is their convenience. Those who have credit or debit cards don't have to search for loose change or stuff their wallets with so many paper bills.

Sivanadian Chockalingam, an expatriate from India, said plastic money is a better option because it allows one to keep track of expenses.

"I prefer to use a credit card always since it is easy to handle and [I] have the records of the amount [spent]. [This is] provided that you have to pay the 100 per cent amount on or before the due date. If not, you will be in a mess," Chockalingam said.

Safeguard funds

"Electronic payments provide state-of-the-art security features which help safeguard cardholder funds in ways that cash cannot. If cash is lost or stolen, it is gone forever," Kamran Seddiqi, Visa general manager for the Middle East told Gulf News.

For instance, Seddiqi said Visa cardholders can easily seek help no matter where they are in the world, in case they lose their card. Their global customer assistance can be reached 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and once a lost card is reported, any fraudulent transactions can be prevented.

In addition, he added, their electronic payment tools offer consumers a "single global currency" that works virtually anywhere, anytime.

While plastic cards may not be accepted in small shops and some public offices, the UAE market has point of sale terminals at more than 80 per cent of big stores and the government is now introducing electronic payments.

"This is a pre-requisite to promote plastic money. It is easy to make transactions on plastic and the time taken to process a transaction is hardly greater than processing and managing cash. Other benefits of using plastic is convenience, security and record keeping," said Sanjoy Sen of Citibank.

"Record keeping is important as you get itemised billing to go through the details of your transactions at the end of the month. Furthermore, given the increase in online shopping, including the addition of more UAE e-government services, credit cards are increasingly more important," Sen said.

If used judiciously and responsibly, cards can also act as a facilitator towards achieving one's lifestyle aspirations. Mustafa Ramzi of HSBC noted that cards carry with them a "wealth of benefits, rewards and privileges."

Track spending

"Within HSBC, we actively promote internet banking and direct banking. All our customers can do banking through our direct banking channels including self-service terminals, internet and telephone banking," he said.

He noted that large organisations like Dewa, etisalat and du also offer customers different avenues to do business and this includes using credit cards and the internet to facilitate payment.

"In the UAE, most establishments accept cards and this provides an additional incentive for customers as it makes the transaction faster. Also, most government establishments allow credit/debit cards as a form of payment and this means that one can actually sit in the comfort of one's office or home and pay these bills online using cards," said R Sivaram of Emirates NBD.

"By making all their payments through their cards, customers can conveniently track their spending through their monthly statement or online banking system," Sivaram added.