Warning to be on the lookout for fake fivers
THE new plastic fiver has been around for a while now but would you know if you were handed a fake?
The £5 note was released in September 2016 and was the first polymer currency ever issued by the Bank of England.
It’s supposed to be the safest yet with a host of new security features. But one man claims he was handed a counterfeit and is now warning other people to watch out.
Peter Fowler, 37, bought lunch in Port Talbot on Friday and was given a £5 note as part of his change.
But when he folded it up to put it into his wallet he said he noticed something strange.
“It felt like a plastic carrier bag. “It felt like it was made out of thin plastic.
“I looked closer and saw the Big Ben was missing and part of the serial number and the Queen’s face were coming off.
“When I compared it to a genuine note I already had I also saw the silver strips were green.”
Mr Fowler, who works as a heating engineer, said that if he had been given the £5 note with other notes, he wouldn’t have realised.
“At first glance, it looked real. People definitely need to pay attention when they’re being handed their change,” he said.
“A lot of people won’t think twice when putting it in their pocket and it’s a lot of money to lose.”