Still 200 million old 10 pound notes in circulation

Shops are still giving out old 10-pound notes, even though the paper note featuring Charles Darwin will cease to be legal tender from Thursday, March 1.

The Bank of England has not yet urged retailers to stop circulating the notes, however, it has stated that even though more than 73 percent of 10 pound notes in circulation are the new polymer notes, there are still more than 200 million paper 10 pound notes left in circulation in the UK.

After March 1, the new 10-pound polymer note featuring Jane Austen will be the only legal 10-pound note in the UK, and was introduced to reduce the amount of counterfeit money in circulation, as the plastic material makes them harder to forge and they are more robust.

While some banks and building societies may accept paper 10-pound notes after March 1, this is at their own discretion states the Bank of England.

Major retailers including supermarkets Tesco and Sainsbury’s have all also stated that they will stop giving out the paper note after Thursday, however, also added that they would also not extend the deadline for the 10 pound note after March 1 like they did when it came to the introduction of the new pound coin.

However, smaller businesses have been urged by the Federation of Small Businesses to continue to accept them beyond Thursday, and the trade body that represents them has called on banks to extend the deadline in order to help get them out of circulation as soon as possible. As come March 1 the only place to swap the old note will be with the Bank of England themselves.

Mike Cherry, Federation of Small Businesses chairman, said: "A new 10-pound note that's harder to fake will be largely welcomed by the small business community. Too often, it's small firms that bear the brunt of counterfeiting.

“Hopefully, we won't see the kind of upheaval that came with the introduction of the new 1 pound coin."

Image: courtesy of the Bank of England