Elgar £20 Banknote to be Withdrawn - Less than 10 Weeks to go

[Tanya]

To all you not in UK keeping money for your next trip there!!

News Release
Elgar £20 Banknote to be Withdrawn - Less than 10 Weeks to go

26 April 2010

As announced on 8 March, the £20 banknote carrying the portrait of composer Sir Edward Elgar is to be finally withdrawn from circulation from 30 June this year – less than ten weeks away. The note has been gradually replaced by the Adam Smith £20 which was introduced in 2007. After that date the note will no longer have ‘legal tender’ status. The note is less likely to be accepted in payment, or in change, in retail outlets after this date.

For several months from the end of June most banks, building societies and Post Offices should accept Elgar £20 notes for deposit to customer accounts and for other customer transactions. Agreeing to exchange the notes for non-customers is at the discretion of the individual institution. The Bank of England will always give value for these notes (and all other banknotes the Bank has issued).

Since 8 March the number of Elgar banknotes in circulation is estimated to have fallen from 150 million (£3bn) to 125 million (£2.5bn). There are approximately 1.5 billion £20 notes (£30bn) in circulation.

[SueDonim]

Wow, talk about seignorage. I guess that's one way to get rid of debt without directly repudiating it (since cash is a liability of the BoE).

[James 1077]

Wow, talk about seignorage. I guess that's one way to get rid of debt without directly repudiating it (since cash is a liability of the BoE).

They update the notes reasonably frequently in the UK as a counterfeit protection measure. Also the old ones start looking a little dated so they make them a little more modern each time (although the last lot were too modern for my tastes!).

Bank of England continue to accept the old ones and will always exchange them - but you do need to go there for that so your best bet is to put any into your bank account or take them to shops. A large number of the big shops and supermarkets have contracts with the bank to withdraw damaged notes and notes that are coming out of circulation so most people won't be notice the change - it is just us expats and foreigners who have a couple of them from the last time we were in the UK who may be effected!

[SueDonim]

My mistake. I missed the note that BoE would continue to accept them. I can see where it would be a nuisance for a visiting expat, but that's not so bad as I had thought

[Flutterby]

i'd better check my foreign money pot just in case.

[bluesky]

Bank of England continue to accept the old ones and will always exchange them - but you do need to go there for that

Out of interest, how does that work - do you just rock up to the Bank of England in Threadneedle St?

[James 1077]

Out of interest, how does that work - do you just rock up to the Bank of England in Threadneedle St?

From what I understand that is the case - never had to do it in practice though!

[Jo Jo]

Out of interest, how does that work - do you just rock up to the Bank of England in Threadneedle St?

Yes, or you can send them by post. Details here.

[Ngeru]

Phew, I looked into this just a while ago as I had no clue they had been changed until I went to the bank and bought some pounds. I thought they were giving me 'funny money'. I have a couple of older ones and thankfully will get to the UK to use them before they expire. But yes I think banks will continue to take them off your hands for a while, after that you literally do have to get them to Threadneedle street yourself.

If you have any, now might be a good time to take them to the bank / bureau and exchange them for NZ dollars - I don't know if they would do a straight swap for shiny new twenty pounds to avoid exchange losses, but it might be worth a try.