Nearly a quarter of adults feel digitally excluded, survey finds

People are more likely to feel confident shopping for goods and services online than they are going digital to pay in car parks or get a mortgage, research indicates.

Confidence for completing some everyday tasks digitally is generally high, with 96% of people feeling confident in shopping for goods and services and 93% feeling the same about accessing government services, a survey for cash access and ATM network Link found.

Just over two-thirds (68%) feel confident paying for car parking digitally and six in 10 (61%) would feel confident in applying for a mortgage.

Booking a healthcare appointment was found to be the most popular “offline” task, favoured by 51% of people surveyed.

Half (50%) of adults surveyed feel confident enough to actively choose to do all of their banking online. But nearly a fifth (18%) of people who do all their banking online said they would prefer to bank in-person, given the option.

Nearly a quarter (24%) of people see themselves as digitally excluded in some form, rising to 44% among those with a household income of under £10,000.

Across the survey, more than a quarter (27%) of people said they favour a digital approach wherever possible, with a further two-fifths (38%) tending to prefer a digital approach, the survey of 2,000 people across the UK in July and August found.

One in nine (11%) tend to favour doing tasks offline, with one in 20 (5%) using an offline approach whenever possible.

Alongside its work to protect access to cash, over the past year, Link funded a digital inclusion pilot in Rhondda in south Wales to test ways to improve the digital capabilities of the local population.

The project reached 150 residents, aiming to support people in improving their digital opportunities for friendship, shopping, work, money management, health, education, and communication.

Adrian Roberts, deputy chief executive at Link, said: “Digital inclusion matters. It affects career progression, social interactions and mental wellbeing, as well as productivity and economic prosperity.

“However, given the relentless speed of technological development, no matter what we do, digital exclusion will continue to exist. It’s not just about age and affordability, there is no guarantee that having the right skills today will mean having the right skills tomorrow. There is no single solution to addressing digital exclusion.

“What is certain is that we must not drift into a future where we have a two-tiered society with a digital world for the young and wealthy and a non-digital world for the older and poorer, where prices are higher and those least able to afford pay the most, exacerbated by key services designed to be accessed digitally first.

“As we learned from our digital pilot in Wales, much can be done through targeted interventions to make a difference and this work must continue.

“What’s positive is that people generally don’t want an exclusively digital society, they want choice: cash and online payments, high streets and online shopping.

“They also want the security of knowing there is a back-up when the technology fails.”