MOTHER taught us all to save up and pay cash and not to use credit. Last Saturday, I was not allowed to spend £80 cash at a well-known store on Tonge Moor Road, Bolton. To say I was 'gobsmacked' is an understatement.

I buy three pairs of a well-known brand of jeans approximately every two years. So, last Saturday afternoon, I made the effort to travel to this store in the cold and wet. I spent 30 minutes browsing and 10 minutes queuing to pay. At check-out number eight I tendered four crispy £20 notes for my goods. (Three pairs of jeans and a T-shirt -- £70.50). The girl said: "Have you got a card?" I said: "What card?" She said: "You can't buy anything without a card, you'll have to get a card." Straight away I saw the three sixes (666). I personally do not want people to know my personal details and I am emphatically against junk mail. I said: "OK, then, I'll go elsewhere."

I could perhaps understand a store wanting your details if you were to pay by credit card or cheque. I still can't believe what happened -- a store not wanting my money!

Incidentally, I went to Fleetwood Freeport on Sunday and purchased my jeans at £6 a pair cheaper! The cashier gladly took my £20 notes. I ask, is it any wonder people don't shop in Bolton? It's the first and last time I go to that store!

Mr Maurice Letts

Plodder Lane,

Farnworth, Bolton