i promise to pay the bearer on demand the sum of...

ninky_2

what would actually happen if you wandered into the bank of england with some bank notes and asked them to do this?

Radiantsoul

They would change your notes for coins.

purch

If you gave them 4 fivers they would probably give you a £ 20.00 note, or 2 tenners, or make a BACS transfer of £ 20.00 to your nominated Bank account.

The last time I took some out of circulation bank notes in, they paid me (the bearer) the amount specified.

Jolly nice about it they were too, and the geezer on the door was very polite too !!!

purch

BTW, if you have any other stupid and easily answered questions, please feel free :eek:

bendix

ninky wrote: »

what would actually happen if you wandered into the bank of england with some bank notes and asked them to do this?

They'd look at you like you're some kind of demented lunatic, take your bank note from you, hand it back and tell you to sling your hook.

Chris2685

They'd go in their drawer and pull out a little leather pouch of silver coins. They would then weigh it out for you and hand you the silver.

Or.... they would just exchange the notes

ninky_2

so why bother having the promise on there then?

surely the coins are just another form of promissory rather than actual value?

Chris2685

Well I believe the promise is now more of a promise to exchange the note for legal tender. So if the note is out of date or damaged, you can get it replaced. I think the actual value of the pound of silver they used to represent is no longer of any relevance, because silver costs way more than £1 per pound.

Orpheo

The teller would discretely whisper, "We've got one," into a hidden microphone on his/her lapel. Shutters would come down to protect the tellers and suddenly a blast of gas would hit you directly in the face. If you are lucky you might awake in a secure facility, if not, you might awake in a dark, confined space without room to move. Disorientated and desperately scratching around you would soon come to realise that just inches above your face is the ceiling of your prison. It seems to be made of wood. Oh my God! It can't be! It will be no use shouting for help. Nobody will hear you.

Rainmaker_uk

purch wrote: »

BTW, if you have any other stupid and easily answered questions, please feel free :eek:

This is not a stupid question and that fact that you all ansewered it in the same way shows you have little grasp of finance or the massive changes that came about when the UK moved to a currency from the gold standard.

Before this you would have been give the equivalent in gold i.e. you money was WORTH SOMTHING. As this is just a currency you money could be worth something or if there is a collapse in confidence - IT COULD BE WORTH NOTHING.

Therefore this is not a stupid question - there have just been stupid answers

nicko33

purch wrote: »

BTW, if you have any other stupid and easily answered questions, please feel free :eek:

does the Bank of England have a FAQ page about banknotes which might be found by popular web searching sites?