The old one pound coin will no longer be legal tender as of October 15th, but many shops will continue to accept them past the cut off date.
A complicated transitional period could emerge, whereby some retailers are choosing to accept the “round pound” and others aren’t. It is understood that The Royal Mint and The Treasury have told businesses they are looking for a “clean break” and wish to avoid frustrating situations for consumers. Thousands of shops are expected to ignore this advice however, as they look to make the transition to the new pound easier on their customers.
A Mixture of Old And New
Although after October 15th shops will no longer be able to hand out old pound coins as change, there is nothing to stop shops accepting them and then exchanging them themselves after this date. The situation is difficult for both retailers and banks, as shop owners will be reluctant to tell customers they cannot pay with old pound coins, but banks will want to avoid a lengthy period of handling mixed pound coins.
Accepting The New Pound
Sainsbury’s and Tesco have also revealed that they still haven’t modified all of their trolleys to accept the new £1 coin. A number of large rail companies have also stated that some of their ticket machines will not be ready for the October 15th deadline. A spokesman from the Treasury stated: “Businesses told us they wanted certainty on a cut-off date, which is why we introduced the October 15 deadline”.
The new coin entered circulation in March with a host of security features to help prevent counterfeiting. If you are still wondering what to do with your old pound coins, you can read how to exchange them and learn more about the new pound coin here.
