The less frequent use of cash these days could lead to complacency about whether or not banknotes are genuine, but if you’re still dealing with cash it’s important to be aware of any potential forgeries.
The IRC has brought to our attention the news that fake Scottish £50 notes are circulating, primarily in England and Wales. This relates to the new Polymer notes so it’s important to beware and to carefully check any Scottish notes you receive.
The ABCI has produced a guide, ‘Know Your Scottish Polymer £50 Notes’, which you can find here. We’d recommend giving it a read and circulating it amongst your staff so that they know how to be vigilant.
It is also advised that the reduced number of older Scottish paper banknotes is leading to higher rates of counterfeiting and so it’s important to check these carefully also. Scotland is ending the use of these paper notes on 30th September 2022.
The passing (or tendering) of counterfeit currency is a crime and should be reported to your Local Police and Not Action Fraud. The Police will require the counterfeit note(s) together with any other relevant evidence / information for example: CCTV of suspects, details of vehicle they were using, etc.
If you have any experience of receiving counterfeit notes that you’d like to share with us you can pop it into an email and we’ll be glad to know about it.