Where can I exchange Royal Mint coins?

Earlier posts in this thread illustrated why it became necessary to clarify that 'legal tender' doesn't mean 'must be widely accepted by banks or shops' as so many people seem to think! It's nothing like PPI and hardly surprising that MSE aren't interested in taking up the challenge, they can't be expected to crusade against every unregulated scheme where investors haven't done enough due diligence as to how to sell up....

Having said that, what exactly have they said in the past when "they've always previously been advertised as £100 for £100"? If it was "buy £100 of coins for £100" then that seems fair enough but if they were making explicit promises that said £100 of commemorative coins could be readily paid into banks or used in shops, etc, then you might have a point!

243ack wrote: »

WOW - sorry we're not all financial geniuses, as you obviously are. To a simple chap like me: legal tender should mean just that. No more - no less.

I wasn't trying to talk down to you so apologies if that's how it came across, I was just emphasising that you're far from alone in misunderstanding what legal tender actually means, which is why Royal Mint tightened up their wording. However, by itself that doesn't mean they were in the wrong but if they've made misleading claims then they should be held accountable, did you find any evidence of this?

243ack wrote: »

So why are 'special edition' 50p coins readily useable?. There are many examples of those, one, for instance, being the 2012 Olympics.
Also, there are several special edition £2 coins.

How and where would you suggest I look for 'misleading claims' - other than the use of 'plain English'. I thought we were trying to steer away from 'small print'?.

I was referring to your assertion that RM have been deceiving and conning people so assumed you had examples of this, i.e. where they've stated or even implied that their high-value commemorative coins can be used as cash in banks or shops. Their website (as linked from earlier posts in this thread last year) clearly states that

although the silver UK coins we produce in denominations of £5, £20, £50 and £100 are approved as legal tender, they have been designed as limited edition collectables or gifts and will not be entering general circulation. As such, UK shops and banks will not accept them.

whereas I believe that special editions of 50p and £2 coins are usable.

I was looking at this the other way round, i.e. on what basis would you have felt that a £100 coin could be used in banks or shops rather than where were you specifically told it couldn't. Having said that, I agree that that wording has been added relatively recently but their argument will no doubt be that this is just for clarification rather than an actual change in policy or legalities - their expansion of what legal tender means did previously (2014) include reference to "It does not mean that any ordinary transaction has to take place in legal tender".

In other words, these coins have always been sold as legal tender but they've (deliberately or not) only recently started to clarify that the legal tender status doesn't mean 'generally usable' - they haven't actually changed the definition of legal tender as it's not within their power to do so.

I don't know the definitive answer to your question about special 50p/£2 coins being usable but presume that it's because these are variants of coins in general circulation (i.e. same denomination/size/spec, would fit in slot machines, etc) whereas coins labelled as £5 or higher aren't directly equivalent to anything in general use.

I do understand why you feel hard done by though, even though I wouldn't see it as a major scandal akin to PPI - have you complained directly to Royal Mint about this?

COIAHLGW wrote: »

Just be glad you don't have £29,300 of them

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/money/news/article-3390519/I-buy-Royal-Mint-commemorative-coins-bulk-credit-card-gain-airmiles-cash-bank-s-refusing-accept-them.html

Right, I'm confused by this one. The guy in the article purchased the coins from a credit card and intended to pay off the credit card bill - his debt - with the same coins. If the commemorative coins are indeed legal tender it shouldn't have been possible for his bank to refuse, surely? Since he was settling a debt and not purchasing goods or services.