The service is offered by both banks and merchants in places such as the Czech Republic, United States, Canada, United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, Ireland, Hong Kong, Belgium, Germany, Sweden, Norway, Poland, the Netherlands, and Spain because of the fee structures in use in those areas: The combination of these two factors means that the retailer can save money by offering the cashback service.
Some vendors enforce a minimum purchase amount or add a fixed fee when providing cashback to a customer.
In many cases, retailers require customers to initial the cashback entry on the till receipt to confirm they have received the cash.
This system is used to prevent cashiers surreptitiously adding cashback amounts to a transaction and keeping the money for themselves (or accusations of same), but more importantly, to ensure that customers cannot return to the store with allegations that the attendant "forgot" to hand over the requested cash.
In 2019, some supermarkets in the United States, such as Harris Teeter, Dillons,[4] and Kroger[5][6][7] began to charge customers fees, ranging from $0.50 to $3.50, for the convenience of receiving cash back at the register.