MSE News: Old fivers must be spent or banked by next Friday

Legacy_user

Consumers have until 5 May to spend or bank their older non-polymer £5 notes before they are officially withdrawn...

Read the full story:
'Old fivers must be spent or banked by next Friday - but you can swap defunct notes'

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Pincher

Why bother, you always end up finding some old money hanging around under the sofa. Still have 15 year old Mexican pesos in an envelope.

If we were all so efficient at returning old junk, how do these collectors get their kicks?

Should have bought an Apple IIe and kept it.

eskbanker

Since the article states:

Banks may still accept deposits of old-style fivers after 5 May
It's likely that banks, building societies and post offices will continue to accept deposits of the older £5 note, even after 5 May - though the BoE has made it clear that this is wholly "at the discretion of the individual institution".
If they do continue to accept them, it's likely they'll do so only for their own customers. This follows the same scenario planned for the withdrawal of the round £1 coin on 15 October.

wouldn't it have been a better use of journalists at a consumer website to make some enquiries of the banks as to what their stance will be and publish that, rather than stating in a headline that the old notes 'must be [spent or] banked by next Friday'?!

Zanderman

Pincher wrote: »

If we were all so efficient at returning old junk, how do these collectors get their kicks?

Should have bought an Apple IIe and kept it.

No you shouldn't. Despite being unusual in the UK the //e was v common in the US, so there are loads of them gathering dust in garages around the world. Might fetch £100 to £200 in good nick and complete, much less if knackered or bits missing, these days. But they were well over £1000 new back in 1985 so not a sound investment . I kept mine for nearly 30 years, only to be disappointed...

Pincher

Zanderman wrote: »

No you shouldn't. Despite being unusual in the UK the //e was v common in the US, so there are loads of them gathering dust in garages around the world. Might fetch £100 to £200 in good nick and complete, much less if knackered or bits missing, these days. But they were well over £1000 new back in 1985 so not a sound investment . I kept mine for nearly 30 years, only to be disappointed...

Damn.

I do have an almost complete collection of 2000AD from the first ten years.

chattychappy

However, if you've still an old fiver or two, you can continue to spend them as usual until 5 May - After this date, shops will be within their rights to refuse them as payment towards goods or services.

[My emphasis]

Shops are always within their rights to refuse any kind of payment - just as some refuse £50 notes.

The exception is if it's in payment of a debt, when only legal tender has to be accepted (again, exceptions apply).

System

Interesting - when the old £10 and £20 notes were phased out, shops had official BoE mini posters stating the date of the withdrawal of the old ones.

Not seen one this time round.

Why?

I'm not looking forward to customers handing me over the old fivers from Saturday saying its their right. No its not!

teddysmum

I thought that old notes would be honoured by banks, but a few months ago went into a Co-op branch, for some other business and asked if they would honour two damaged £5 notes and a single £1.


They paid £10 into my account (no cash for cash on the damaged notes) and refused the £1 completely. I hadn't expected any payment to me for the latter but asked if they could give it to a charity. (I really have a feeling that Barclays paid the value of a few old £1 notes into the account of a dog rescue , into whose account I was paying some fund day coins).

teddysmum

I saw my first plastic note, yesterday (rarely use cash), when I spent one old £5 note and asked the checkout lady to exchange anther for me.


The plastic note had been folded and sprung back into folded mode, once free of the till's spring, so I can't see these 'economical' notes lasting very long as the fold lines will make the plastic brittle, resulting in splits.

Zanderman

teddysmum wrote: »

...The plastic note had been folded and sprung back into folded mode, once free of the till's spring, so I can't see these 'economical' notes lasting very long as the fold lines will make the plastic brittle, resulting in splits.

I can't imagine the BoE haven't taken that risk into account. They will have chosen the type of plastic accordingly to minimise or eliminate that risk.

Edited to add: If you want to know more about the material and the rationale behind it look at the BoE info pages here:
http://www.bankofengland.co.uk/banknotes/polymer/Pages/why_polymer.aspx
and here:
http://www.bankofengland.co.uk/banknotes/polymer/Pages/factsheets.aspx

Note that they don't call them 'plastic' but 'polymer' (though, iirc from A level physics, plastics are polymers...)

solentsusie

I must admit I had no clue that the old fivers were not legal tender from the end of this week.

Looks like I may have to break my terramundi pot and get the ones out of there!