What to do with old andpound;1 coins

The old one pound coin was demonetised in 2017, but there are still millions out there in the UK Here's what to do if you find an old £1The original, round 1 coin was introduced in 1983, replacing the old 1 note However, these antiquated coins have not been in use since 2017

The new 12-sided 1 coin took their place in March 2017. According to the Royal Mint, the new coin is among the most secure in the world thanks to a variety of overt and covert anti-counterfeiting measures.

The first 1 coins to feature King Charles III entered circulation in 2024, with almost three million making their way around the UK.

In the years since the new style coins were introduced, most round 1 coins have been taken out of circulation, melted down, and turned into the new style 1 coins.

However, despite being demonetised for more than eight years, many people will still find some of these old coins in their homes.

We look at how many are still out there, and what you should do if you find one.

What is the number of old 1 coins?

According to the Royal Mint, there are still about 70 million old 1 coins in British pockets and on the backs of couches nationwide.

While this may sound like there are still lots out there, the number pales in comparison to the amount of old 1 coins that have been returned.

More than 1.6 billion old 1 coins were removed from circulation and returned to the Royal Mint, according to the most recent data, meaning that about 4.1 percent of all old 1 coins are still in circulation.

Some of these coins may be extremely valuable beyond their face value because they are rare. Be careful of "rare" coins on online marketplaces a coin listed for a high price might not necessarily be worth that much.

What to do with old 1 coins.

If you have an old 1 coin, you will not be able to use it to pay for goods or services as it has been demonetised since 2017. You might be able to swap it for a fresh coin, though.

According to the Royal Mint, the majority of high street banks usually accept demonetized coins (such as the old round 1 coin) and exchange them for new coins. Some larger Post Office branches are usually willing to do this too.

Barclays, Lloyds, HSBC, Nationwide, Santander, and Virgin Money are among the retail banks that claim to accept old coins. At the Bank of England, old coins cannot be exchanged.

Banks and Post Office branches are under absolutely no legal obligation to exchange old 1 coins with new ones, meaning it is up to their own discretion whether they do so.

For more information on what to do with old notes, read our article on What to do with old 20 notes how to exchange them.