When I tried to buy something at a local shop, the shop assistant refused to take a £1 coin I proffered because she thought it was counterfeit. I took it to my bank for confirmation and they confiscated it! I didn't question the bank's authority to do that, but I'd have liked to have kept it as a conversation piece. The only sign that it wasn't genuine was that the golden colour was starting to wear off, revealing a silvery colour underneath.
You have been warned!
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I think I have seen one of those, if you look closely is has something like 'euro' on it.. feels cheap and nasty to me! ;-)
reminds me of the Irish counterfeiters, who were making 10p's by filing the corners off 50p's....
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I know you were joking but ........ I studied mine closely and compared it with a genuine coin, and the only difference I could see was in the surface colour. Unfortunately I don't have the means to compare weights of such small items.
Last edited by: L'escargot on Sun 30 May 10 at 10:25
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You're lucky it was only a quid.
I had a counterfeit twenty note confiscated years ago when I was paying a deposit into the bank.
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Erin Dors lost £40 like this. She got some dosh from the machine at the Abby National and went in to change 2 twenties for coin or smaller notes. They were both hooky and they called the Law. In spite of getting them from a machine 15 ft from the counter, there was no proof that they were the same notes.....she lost them with no recompense.
Ted
Last edited by: VxFan on Sun 30 May 10 at 21:00
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I'm surprised they didn't reimburse you in that instance, Ted. Good will and all that...
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Banks and the police have a policy of no refunds ever whereever you got them from. To do so would legitimise the forgeries.
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how on earth did fakes get into the machine?
I would have thought they would get checked before being loaded - in fact how come they didn't get picked up when they re-entered the banking system?
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>> Banks and police have a policy of no refunds...
I know that the manager of my own building society branch has (or had) the authority to pay out a discretionary sum of up to £20 in the event of a minor dispute. Perhaps a payment in this category should have been made to soften the blow.
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NOT when Fakes are in involved. Its a BoE strong guidance.
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If they get through the counting machine, they get into the system.
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So, the counting machine passes the notes, they get loaded into the money machine, and when you try to change them the bank says sorry, these are toilet paper, where on earth did you get them? Sounds profitable.
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>>The only sign that it wasn't genuine was that the golden colour was starting to wear off,
>>
One other test is to hold it by the edges between your finger and thumb. Then turn it around its axis. A genuine one will always have both "faces" the same way up.
I understand that fakes are not correctly aligned in this way
Now found a link.
news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/magazine/7628930.stm
Lots of £20 bad notes around. Some local shops, in ignorance, have them pinned up as examples.
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I must admit that when I get a fake £ coin in my change (usually in a pub, as thats the only time I dont check change carefully) I try to get rid of it in a vending machine or car park. If all else fails I give to my son as part of his pocket money ;)
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We get them every Christmas. The give-away sign is the chocolate inside.
After the last panic a year ago I took to checking my coins, and found one where the two faces did not align. I took it to the bank for an opinion, and after much consultaion they said it was genuine - the alignment test is not correct.
So now I don't bother checking, I just pass them on to someone else.
Can someone explain why Quantitative Easing is good for the economy, but circulation of a few fake notes or coins will undermine civilisation as we know it?
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...but circulation of a few fake notes or coins will undermine civilisation as we know it?...
Confidence in the medium of exchange.
Not quite so important these days with more electronic transactions.
But the country would still be thrown into chaos if no one trusted cash and coins.
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>> Confidence in the medium of exchange.
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>>>>
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I thought the worst financial crash since 1929 had just been brought about by poor regulation, bankers' greed, inflexible exchange rates? But our confidence in the system is undented because some harmless bank customer has just had his counterfeit coin confiscated?
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Cliff,
You've answered your own question.
Despite the worst crash since 1929, our basic confidence in the system remains undented because we trust the medium of exchange - notes and coins.
If that trust were lost, there would be chaos, not just a few companies going skint and a few people losing their jobs.
One of the ways confidence can be lost is if there is widespread counterfeiting.
A few bent fivers is neither here nor there.
But if we all came across counterfeits every week, confidence would be lost and the use of notes and coins would break down.
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>> But if we all came across counterfeits every week, confidence would be lost and the
>> use of notes and coins would break down.
I think that's what Uncle Adolf had in mind about 70 yrs ago.
Flood the country with snide fivers, then sit back in the FuhrerBunker and watch the mayhem.
Ted
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...the alignment test is not correct...
The Royal Mint begs to differ:
It says a 'feature' of a counterfeit coin is: "The orientation of the obverse and reverse designs is not in line."
www.royalmint.com/Corporate/facts/CounterfeitPoundCoins.aspx
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"Regular surveys are undertaken by the Royal Mint to establish the incidence of £1 counterfeit coins. The most recent survey indicated a counterfeit rate of around 2.5%."
2.5%! Wow! I'll be checking change I'm given more carefully in future.
Last edited by: L'escargot on Wed 2 Jun 10 at 07:48
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>> I didn't question the bank's authority to do that
I do not think that "the bank" has any right or authority to do such a thing.
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personally i think there is a lot more dodgy cash floating around that the authorities would rather not make a scene about in case it does indeed cause panic in the public
only last month a major conterfeiting ring was smashed
see here
menmedia.co.uk/asiannews/news/s/1195087_1m_counterfeit_cash_gang_jailed
wharfedalemediagroup.co.uk/2010/05/24/five-in-court-after-counterfeit-cash-recovered-in-west-yorkshire-and-north-wales/
etc etc
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Happened to us a few years back when paying in around £2400 from the sale of a car. Nationwide BS cashier said to the Mrs one of the £20s was dodgy and dropped the credit by that amount. Overnight we decided we'd like to have a part in the decision making process as to it being real or not but the next day were told it was too late as it had gone for destruction.
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A counterfeit coin was confiscated by my bank! - swiss tony
