There may be something about money that generates a special conservatism and fear of the unknown. The shift to the euro clearly has strong emotional overtones for many Europeans, especially older Europeans, who feel some important part of their heritage is disappearing with the franc, the mark, and the lire. The tangibility of paper may have some emotional appeal. It's not gold, but at least you can see it, touch it, lock it up and know where it is. But one does not have to appeal to the irrational to see reasons for the persistence of checks.
Checks are easy to write, widely accepted and their legal status as proof of payment is clear.
Moreover, they appear cheap to the user. In their eagerness to attract deposits, depository institutions have made checking accounts as attractive as possible, seldom charging per check fees, relying on minimum balance requirements or low interest rates on transaction balances to recoup costs. Moreover, check users get the benefits of float. Thus, the check writer and the receiver perceive the costs of using checks as low and have little incentive to seek an alternative. Moreover, alternative electronic systems run straight into the network problem.