Can i shred old share certificares?

Frank99

I have been holding onto old share certificates but the shares have been transferred to crest or digital 10-15 years ago.
My other half is moaning about these piles of paper cluttering the cupboards, i kept them originally just in case as i like paper evidence as apposed to digital stuff being old fashioned.
I take screenshots of my share accounts as evidence of holdings etc and keep them as proof in case of any inaccuracies down the line or hacking etc.
Is it daft to keep hold of these old certificates now as my holdings have grown from what those certificates show!

lozzy1965

You don't need them but you might find you can sell them for their historical noteworthiness!  People will buy all sorts of weird stuff!
It's crazy to keep them for record purposes, though I too am crazy, having still got a handful of paper certificates.

maxsteam

I am curious as to how you transferred the holdings to electronic form yet managed to retain the certificates.

No. You should not shred them. One option is to put them in a box and ask your local house clearance auctioneer to sell them. You might get £10 for a box full. The buyer might sell some for a couple of pounds each on eBay. There is a scripophilist near you.

lozzy1965

I got at least some switched automatically to crest - I think when brokers were taken over.  Some went bust too though, leaving me with the certificate.

Thrugelmir

Have a look on Ebay might be that are collectable. 

wmb194

The problem with keeping defunct certificates is that they often end up confusing executors and regularly there are threads evidencing this. 

If you do hold on to any I'd suggest keeping notes with them or writing on them to say that they've been dematerialised and, if it's straightforward, to which broker they went.