A warning has been issued to anyone who still uses cash to pay for their shopping. If you use the wrong notes at shops like ASDA, Tesco, Aldi, M&S or Morrisons from September, your transaction will be rejected.
This is because old £20 and £50 notes will have been officially replaced by then, although the Bank of England will allow Britons to exchange their old-style £20 and £50 notes after the September deadline. Chief Cashier Sarah John said : “We want to remind the public that from today they only have six months left to spend or deposit their paper £20 and £50 notes.
“Over the past few years we have been changing our banknotes from paper to polymer, because these designs are more difficult to counterfeit, whilst also being more durable. A large number of these paper notes have now been returned to us, and replaced with the polymer £20 featuring the artist J.M.W. Turner, and the polymer £50 featuring the scientist Alan Turing. However if members of the public still have any of these paper notes in their possession, they should deposit or spend them whilst they can”.
READ MORE: Tesco in hot water over 'dreadful' price difference if you have a Clubcard
The notes are being replaced with the new polymer £20 notes featuring J.M.W. Turner, and polymer £50 notes featuring Alan Turing. The introduction of polymer banknotes allows for a new generation of security features which make them even harder to counterfeit.
It comes following similar banknotes for the £5 and £10 some years ago. The fiver was released back in 2016, featuring Sir Winston Churchill, Birmingham Live reports..
How to exchange old bank notes
On the Bank of England (BoE) website, there are instructions for those who may still be clinging on to old paper banknotes. You can look to exchange them at the following places:
- At your bank : The BoE says the easiest way to exchange notes is to deposit them with your bank. You'll need to visit your nearest bank branch in person to do this.
- At the Post Office : The Post Office may also accept withdrawn notes as payment for goods and services, or as a deposit into any bank account you can access with them.
- At the Bank of England : You can post old banknotes to the BoE and they'll then send you a cheque for the amount, or the equivalent in new polymer notes.
Send your banknote(s) and photocopies of ID to Department NEX, Bank of England, Threadneedle Street, London EC2R 8AH. You can also visit the BoE in person to exchange old notes.
You may be asked to complete a form and need to provide two original identity documents. The BoE may also exchange accidentally torn, damaged or mutilated notes - as long as they are genuine and not counterfeit.
When did the old £5 and £10 get withdrawn?
The old paper £5 note - which was replaced by a new polymer version on September 13, 2016 - stopped being legal tender on May 5, 2017. As for the old £10 note - of which a new polymer version came out on September 14, 2017 - the cut-off date for using this was March 1, 2018.
