5 things you can still do with your Round Pounds

By Change Checker | October 18, 2017 |

The deadline day to trade in your Round £1 coins has now been and gone yet it’s estimated that there’s still over 450 million coins in circulation.

It’s estimated that there are still over 450 million Round Pounds still in circulation.

However, don’t panic if you didn’t have time to return them to the bank or have found some in a forgotten piggybank, there’s a number of options for you.

Here’s a list of five things you can do with your old Round Pounds to ensure that you don’t lose out:

1. Check if your coin is rare

If you find a Round Pound, the first thing to do is check to see if it’s rare. The most accurate way to determine the rarity of a circulation coin is our Scarcity Index.

Our Scarcity Index is the most accurate way to determine the scarcity of your Round Pounds.

From our experience we know that the rarer a coin is, the more desirable it becomes to collectors.

Although they are unlikely to make you rich overnight, some of the rarest circulation £1 coins currently sell for up to £20 on eBay. We’d also expect this to increase slightly now the coins have been withdrawn from circulation.

2. Donate your coin to The RBL Poppy Appeal

The RBL will accept donated Round Pounds for the duration of their Poppy Appeal.

The Royal British Legion have announced that this year they’ll be accepting donated old pounds for the duration of their Poppy Appeal.

You can support the Armed Forces community by donating your coins right up until Remembrance Sunday which falls on the 12th November.

 3. Return your coin to the bank

You can still deposit your Round Pounds at high street banks but you’ll need to be quick as this is only a temporary measure and at the bank’s discretion.

 4. Spend your coin

A number of retailers have announced that they’ll continue to accept the Round Pound even though it is officially no longer legal tender.

Tesco and Poundland have agreed to continue accepting the Round Pound; Tesco for an extra week and Poundland until the 31st October.

The Federation of Small Businesses has also advised its members to continue accepting the round coins to provide a “useful community service” to customers.

5. Swap your coin using the Change Checker Swap Centre

You can list your Round Pounds as available to swap using our Swap Centre.

Now that an estimated 1.2 billion Round Pounds have been withdrawn from circulation by the Royal Mint, not forgetting the many thousands that have been added to private collections, it’s become increasingly difficult for collectors to complete their Round Pound sets.

If you find a Round Pound which you do not need, why not list it as available to swap on our Swap Centre? It may well be that it is the exact coin somebody is looking for.

Posted in £1 Coins, Coin News

STOP: the five £1 coins you must NOT cash in!

By Change Checker | September 15, 2017 |

*** 2020 UPDATE ***

Three years since the old round pound coins were demonetised and replaced by the 12 sided £1, it’s been revealed that 122 million of these old coins still have not been returned to The Royal Mint.

Roughly 1.58 billion have found their way back to the Mint, but in addition to this, there have been at least 1.5 billion counterfeit round pounds handed in.

The Royal Mint said these fakes “could not be readily distinguished from the genuine coin, which is why a new coin was introduced”.

But, of the 122 million genuine round pounds still in circulation, which ones should you be looking out for?

In 2017, the Round £1 coins were demonetised and replaced by the new 12 sided coins we see today. The public were encouraged to spend or return their coins to the banks, but did you know that not all of these coins made it back to The Royal Mint?

Whilst these old coins are no longer legal tender, they can still be returned to the bank and deposited into you account, however there’s a few coins you definitely shouldn’t be cashing in if you’re lucky enough to find one (tip: try looking down the back of the sofa, in coat pockets or old supermarket bags for those lost and forgotten coins!).

Here are the ones to look out for:

Scotland: Edinburgh City

The Edinburgh City £1 Coin

The Edinburgh City £1 coin was released in 2011 with a mintage of just 935,000, making it the lowest Round Pound by 680,000!

Taking this into account, there’s no real surprise that this coin sits top of our Scarcity Index with a perfect score of 100.

Such is the rarity, only 17% of Change Checker users list having this coin in their collection.

This coin currently sells for between £7-£12.

Wales: Cardiff City

The Cardiff City £1 Coin

Another of the capital cities series, the Cardiff City £1 coin is definitely one to keep.

Released in 2011, this coin has a mintage of just 1,615,000 and is in 2nd position in our Scarcity Index with a very high score of 88.

This coin depicts the circular Coat of Arms of Cardiff as the principal focus to represent Wales.

This coin is worth between £3-£5.

England: London City

The London City £1 Coin

The 3rd coin from the capital cities series that you should hold on to is the London City £1 coin. Interestingly, the Belfast City coin does not make our list.

Released in 2010, this coin has a mintage of 2,635,000, much higher than Edinburgh and Cardiff but low in comparison to other £1 coins.

London City scores an impressive 77/100 in our Scarcity Index.

This coin can sell for between £3-£6.

Scotland: Thistle and Bluebell

Scotland: Thistle and Bluebell £1 coin

The Thistle and Bluebell £1 coin was released in 2014 as part of the floral emblems series.

It has a mintage figure of 5,185,000 and scores a 55 on our Scarcity Index, coming in 4th place.

This coin features a thistle alongside a bluebell to represent Scotland.

This is worth between £2-£5.

UK: Crowned Shield

UK: Crowned Shield £1 coin

The UK Crowned Shield £1 coin was released way back in 1988, only 5 years after the Round £1 came into circulation.

Although it has a relatively low mintage figure of 7,118,825, this coin makes the list due to some interesting Change Checker App data.

It scores a 51 in our Scarcity Index but less than 1/4 of Change Checker users list having this coin in their collection and swap requests outnumber swap listings by 6 to 1!

This coin will sell for between £3-£7.50.

It’s worth noting that our valuations are based on coins that have recently sold on auction sites. The value of a coin depends on a number of factors including the coin’s condition.

Own the 2017 Round £1 Collecting Pack

Secure your exclusive £1 Collector Pack today which includes Britain’s last round pound as well as an original £1 Banknote. Click here to order yours >>

Or take a look at the old round £1 coins and complete your collection here >>

Posted in £1 Coins, Blog Home, Coin News