Take note and you could be coining it in...
The notes and small change in your purse or wallet could be worth more than you think, says NISHA MAL
MANY of us dream of coming across a rare antique that could be worth a fortune. But we don’t think of rummaging through our spare change to find something valuable.
You might want to think again though, as some coins can be worth hundreds of times their face value – if not more.
A rare ‘error’ London Olympic 50p coin can sell for up to £1,000 while the ‘new pence’ 2p can fetch up to £650.
If you happen to get one of the new polymer £10 notes, with a special serial number, you could be quids in too.
Here’s a rundown of some of the most valuable coins and notes.
THE NEW POLYMER £10 NOTE
ACCORDING to money expert site Change Checker, notes with key Jane Austen dates are worth looking out for.
These include serial numbers ‘16 121775’ and ‘18 071817’ – which represent the author’s date of birth and death, respectively – and ‘17 751817’ – her birth and death year combined.
True Jane Austen fanatics would know that serial number ‘28 011813’ is the date that the author’s most celebrated novel, Pride and Prejudice, was first published.
You should also look out for JA01 (Austen’s initials), JA75 (referring to Austen’s birth year of 1775) and JA17 (the year of her death) notes which are likely to become popular with collectors.
Change Checker said: “It could be many years before notes with these serial numbers enter circulation due to the huge amount of possible combinations that would come before JA.
“Consecutively numbered notes are always interesting to collectors too, one man sold three consecutive AA01 £5 notes for £456.”
THE NEW £5 NOTE
AFTER the fiver was launched in September last year, collectors were keen to get their hands on the first batch of notes that went into circulation. The most highly prized are those beginning with the serial code ‘AA01’.
One lucky eBay seller sold a freshly minted polymer £5 note with AA01 number for £227 on the site.
EDINBURGH £1 COIN
THIS is the only UK £1 coin with a mintage below one million – there are 935,000 of them in circulation.
It was created in 2011 as part of a series depicting the capital cities of the UK. If it is mint condition it can fetch up to £30.
THE NEW £1 COIN
IN MARCH the 12-sided coin came into circulation. More than 200,000 of the coins were sent out to retailers last year for “testing”. These were classed as “trial coins”, are stamped with ‘TRIAL PIECE’ and are not legitimate tender, yet have been selling for hundreds of pounds on eBay. Alex Cassidy from Go Compare’s Coining It In says: “These new £1 trial coins are fascinating, especially considering the financial precedent of the £2 trial coins in 1994, which have since become one of the most sought after collectable coins in Britain.
“If these new trial coins turn out to be as valuable as 1994’s, then anyone who gets their hands on them now could be sitting on a future goldmine.”
KEW GARDENS 50p
THIS limited edition 50p was released in 2009 to
commemorate the 250th anniversary of the Royal Botanic Gardens at Kew and tops CoinChecker’s scarcity index list.
The coin, below right, is highly sought after by collectors and just 210,000 were manufactured by the Royal Mint, compared to a standard minting of around five million. It is worth up to more than 400 times its value.
Some are selling on eBay from £62 to £500.
LONDON OLYMPIC 50p
IN 2012, 29 different designs of this 50p were released to commemorate the London Olympics.
The most valuable coin is the aquatic coin, right, which shows a swimmer’s face plunged in water. Only 600 of these were minted and it is thought to be an error coin. The Royal Mint later released a new design of it which shows the swimmer’s face.
The original error coin – with the swimmer’s face covered in water – can fetch up to £1,000 according to Change Checker.
JEMIMA PUDDLE DUCK 50p AND SQUIRREL NUTKIN 50p
IN MARCH last year, a batch of Peter Rabbit coins entered circulation in the Lake District and a few other British locations related to the works of Beatrix Potter.
Shortly after, they started appearing on eBay for far more than 50p. There are three different sets of five Beatrix Potter 50p coins – Peter Rabbit, Jemima Puddle-Duck, Mrs Tiggy-Winkle, Squirrel Nutkin and a special 150th anniversary coin. The 2016 Beatrix Potter 50p coins rank highly in the scarcity list, with Jemima Puddle-Duck and Squirrel Nutkin coming in at numbers six and seven – based largely on the fact that not many people own them and they are in very high demand. A Jemima Puddle-Duck 50p coin is on sale on eBay for £14.99.
THE EURO 50p
A 1992 50p piece, featuring 12 stars and representing the EC Single Market, has been known to sell for around £50-£55 online. These are the old-fashioned chunky 50 pences so you are unlikely to turn one up in your change, but it could be worth checking any long-term penny jars.
WWF 50p
RELEASED in 2011, this commemorative coin features 50 tiny animals with the WWF panda at its heart. It is selling for more than £10 – even though it has been in circulation a while.
Be careful when buying, as some of these standard coins are being advertised at massively inflated prices. However, a few of the rarer editions are selling for hundreds of pounds.
UNDATED ROYAL 20p
THE Royal Mint released a Royal Shield of Arms series in 2008. A different detail of the shied was printed on the tail side of each one – when placed together they reveal the shield in full.
The series included 1p, 2p, 5p, 10p, 20p and 50p coins. However an error on the 20p meant that around 136 millions coins were printed without a date – normally the date is stamped on it. Buyers are willing to pay up to £100 for an undated coin.
NEW PENCE 2p COIN 1983
THE 2p coins were minted between 1971 and 1982 and they should say ‘new pence’ on the front, while those released after this date say ‘two pence’.
But in 1983 a small number were accidentally minted with ‘new pence’ on the front. The Royal Mint is uncertain how many went into circulation. They can fetch up to £650 online.