Read If You You Have Old Pound Coins – £1, £2, 50p, 20p & 5p

Information about what to do with old pound coins.

The United Kingdom coinage is denominated in pounds sterling “£”. The pound has been divided into 100 pence (new) on 15 February 1971. About 30.14 billion coins were in circulation in the United Kingdom. Royal Mint in Llantrisant, Wales mints the British coins. There are eight coins of different denomination in UK currency, including £2, £1, 50 pence, 20 pence, 10 pence, 5 pence, 2 pence, and 1 penny (pence). The back of pence coins was redesigned in 2008 to show a different image of Royal Shield. In February 2017, the Mint issued a circulation, “The public is requested to spend ’round pounds’ at the earliest up to 15 October 2017 because these will be re-used to produce a new styled £1 coin.” According to an estimate by Go Compare Money, around £430 million worth of out of circulation coins is stored in car glove boxes, coin jars, piggy banks in the UK.

The Most Valuable £1, £2, 50p, 20p & 5p Old Pound Coins:

We see regular media storm in the UK about the Brits scrambling their wallets, glove boxes, coin jars, piggy banks etc to sort out the coins having worth more than the stamped value. You too might have one. Do you know the most valuable round coins you might have knowingly or unknowingly?

Commonwealth £2 Coin:

It is a special coin launched to commemorate Commonwealth Games in 2002 in Northern Ireland 2002. It is rare to be seen £2 coin as less than 500,000 coins were minted. You can sell these coins online even for £15 to £25.

‘Typo’ Guy Fawkes Coin:

This 50p coin was released in 2005 on 400th anniversary of Gunpowder plot by Royal Mint. These had an embarrassing typo ‘Remember the Fifth of November’. This 50p coin can be sold out online for £5 to £7.

Charles Dickens £2 Coin:

It was released in 2012 to commemorate 200th birthday of famous author. The reverse side of coin features the titles of his famous books. You can sell this coin online for £4 or more sometimes more.

Olympic Swimmer 50p coin:

The original Olympic aquatic coin designed with wavy lines on a swimmer’s face website a great collectable as just 600 coins were released prior to change in design. This 50p coin with swimmer’s face can be sold even for amazing £800.

Kew Garden 50p Coin:

The 50 pence coin was stamped with Kew Gardens Pagoda. It is rare to find coin as just 210,000 coins were minted. Up to some years back, this coin was being sold at whopping £120 but today, you can sell it in between £30-£50 if you find a coin collecting enthusiast.

Peter Rabbit 50p Coin:

These pretty looking Beatrix Potter coins were released in limited numbers. The Royal Mint never revealed how many coins were minted. The special edition coloured Beatrix Potter animal coins can be sold anywhere between £5 and £15.

Similarly, you might have other rare to find elsewhere coins in your home or office drawers; some of these are – undated 20p, a 5p coin of 1993, 5p error coin of 2008, 10p silver coin of 1968, a 2p coin of 1983 and £1 coin of 2015 or 2016.

What to Do With Old Round Pounds Coins:

Although many round old coins have lost the legal tender status from midnight of 15 October 2017; however, these old coins can be deposited into bank accounts. Specific arrangements vary at large from bank to bank including the maximum depositing limit. You will have to go to your bank, area post office or building society to exchange the old currency. Any post office can sort this problem for you, provided, you have an account with building society or bank. If a high street bank denies exchanging your money, the Bank of England will do it certainly because it is legally bound. For exchanges, you will need to put the old currency into plastic cash wallet issued by the bank. If you take old coins to the local post office, you can deposit the currency into your bank account directly; luckily, you have more than 11,500 branches. If you are living outside of London, the Bank of England lets you send old currency through post also. The highest street banks including Ulster, HSBC, RBS, NatWest, Barclays, Lloyds, Clydesdale, Santander, Nationwide, Bank of Scotland, Yorkshire Bank, Halifax are providing this facility; so, you don’t need to panic. Yes, you must have proof of address and photo ID for verification purpose.

What to Do If You Don’t Have Local Bank Branch:

For many people having old money coins, it often becomes difficult to have a local branch of a bank if they are staying out of their city or in a new area. In this case, you are left with one option to approach the post office. Donating some coins to a charity organization is also a good idea that gives you mental peace. You can sell the coins online also to coin collectors. Using online sources seems the best way to sell the old pound coins but not all the websites are designed to help you get the best price. If you are not confident of getting the best price of old British coins, you can explore the following routes also:

  1. ☺Coin shows: Regularly organized at various locations all across the UK.
  2. ☺Online coin dealers: These professionals actively buy old coins.
  3. ☺Local Coin dealers: If you are in hurry to sell the old pound coins because of urgent need of cash from a local source, it is a good option but you may not get the best price.
  4. ☺Online auction sites: Some of these websites charge a fee while some let you do it free; here you need in-depth knowledge of the real market value of coins that you have to sell.
  5. ☺Private Treaty sale: It is a better option than online auction sites but it offers limited to scope to sell your old coins. The best part is that you don’t pay anything as commission over the sale value.

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