Modern day money handling in hunts

Welcoming visitors on hunting days and at other events can be financially beneficial for hunts but with there being fewer cash transactions these days, we look at how facilitating card payments can make transactions easier and quicker for hunts and their supporters.

While hunts rely on – and encourage – subscriptions for regular income to support their infrastructure, one of the biggest income streams outside of this is from visitors who pay on the day, alongside fundraising at events. In my own experience of being a Hunt Secretary from 2011-2013, cash or cheque was the only way we did it. Over the past 10+ years we have better 3G and 4G connection and systems such as contactless payments and mobile card machines are now more affordable and mobile, even in harder-to-reach areas. Contactless payment is the modern-day way of money handling.

Some hunts are already using these more modern methods of money handling, such as Leicestershire hunt, the Quorn. We spoke to Nicola Housley who said:

“Often people don’t want to pay a cap ahead of a meet in case they don’t make it for whatever reason and may forget when they get home, and the secretary then needs to follow up and lots of people simply don’t use cash anymore. With Tap on Phone payments, it is so much easier for the customer and easy for the secretary. We use Lopay with transaction fees of 0.79% for weekly pay outs or 0.99% for next day plus 8p. Zettle offer the same for a flat rate of 1.79%.”

There are many different types of card readers as detailed below. Selecting the one that works best for your hunt is important.

• Magstripe reader: This reader is gradually being phased out but involves swiping the card magnetic stripe on the back.
• Chip card reader: This is designed to read the chip on the card which needs to be inserted into a machine. There is a reduced risk of fraud with this type of machine.
• Mobile card reader: These are small devices that can be connected to a smartphone or a tablet which makes them much more portable and perhaps better for hunt secretaries when they are moving around at a meet.
• Contactless card readers: These readers enable contactless payments using a card of smartphone to pay. Customers simply tap their cards or smartphone near the reader to complete a quick simple transaction. Another great option for a mounted and unmounted hunt secretary.

When deciding which card reader is right for your hunt or event, it is worth considering whether there may be poor or limited signal at the location where the payment will be taken. There are some card readers which have an offline mode which can process transactions even with little or no signal. We have picked out a couple of examples of card reader machines that may be considered by hunts when taking payments at various countryside locations:

Lopay: Currently used by the Quorn Hunt, this option has a card reader at £24 plus P&P which is small and with a slightly slimmer fit than some other machines so it should fit seamlessly into a hunt coat. With a lower transaction fee (0.79%) than some others, it makes for an attractive option; this fee is for Thursday weekly pay-outs. If you want a next day option, the transaction fee is 0.99%.

Zettle: Slightly more expensive at £29 plus P&P, it also has the highest transaction fee at 1.75%. The card reader is small and slimline making it another easy option for when collecting money from a mounted field. It does also offer an offline option.

There are many more card readers on the market and, as with all of them, if you are turning over more than £10,000 per month these fees may change. Please always contact the providers directly for further information.

Modern day money handling on the hunting field has changed in a positive and easy way that enables supporters to pay with the touch of a card, or by phone. This creates a more seamless way of collecting money at a meet and thus, hopefully, giving the secretaries and other event organisers a more straightforward day.