NEW £1 COIN CHAOS
Some firms not ready for 12-sided pounds
CUSTOMERS across Wales could face chaos because thousands of businesses aren’t prepared for the new £1 coins. The new coins will start appearing in your pockets from Tuesday but the changes to the coin’s shape and size will mean they might not be accepted by some machines.
Companies have spent months preparing for the new coins, which will replace the old ones entirely by October.
But the changes aren’t all complete, and some business have issued warnings they aren’t ready for the new coins.
Tesco has admitted some of its trolleys will not be ready for the new 12-sided £1 coin when it comes into circulation.
A Tesco spokesman said: “We will unlock trolleys while this process is completed and we will continue to have colleagues on hand to attend trolleys in our stores, so our customers aren’t affected by the changes.”
Sainsbury’s, Asda, Morrisons, Aldi and Lidl have said their trolleys will be converted by next week, accepting both old and new coins.
A similar situation looks likely at some of Wales’ train stations as Great Western admitted some of its machines won’t be ready for the new coins on Tuesday.
A spokesman for Great Western Railway said it was working to make sure all of its machines would accept them by October.
He said: “We are working to ensure all ticket vending machines across our estate will be able to accept the new £1 before the present coin ceases to be legal tender.”
Parking machines also might not be ready for the change-over. About a quarter of the UK’s 100,000 pay and display machines won’t have been updated in time to accept the new 12-sided coin, the British Parking Association said. This could cause chaos as customers find they don’t have the right cash to pay. A spokesman for the association said: “Drivers shouldn’t forget that they can continue to use the old pound coin until October.” In what might be good news for people’s waistlines, those heading to the office vending machine for a mid-morning snack could also run into problems About 40% of the UK’s 500,000 machines will not be updated in time for the new coins, according to the Automatic Vending Association. Vending machines in offices and gyms, which are maintained by companies rather than big suppliers, are likely to be slow to change.