General info
The race is on for two BRAND NEW 2018 International Isle of Man TT £2 coins
Each year during May and June, the Isle of Man proudly hosts the International Isle of Man TT (Tourist Trophy) motorcycle event.
Since its inaugural race in 1907, the event has traditionally been a time-trial and is known by motoring enthusiasts world-wide as the ultimate road race.
This year, over 45,000 motorcycle racing fanatics from around the world are set to make their way to the Isle of Man to be in the heart of the action as they watch the unforgettable TT races.
‘Mike the Bike’ – Mike Hailwood, 14 time winner of the Isle of Man TT. Credit: www.motorcyclenews.com
Commemorating motoring legend, ‘Mike the Bike’
2018 celebrates 60 years since fan favourite, ‘Mike the Bike’ first raced the International Isle of Man TT and 40 years since he returned to the event.
Mike Haliwood secured 14 Isle of Man victories during his racing career and his triumphant return to the TT has been described as ‘one of the most emotional moments of 20th century sport’.
To mark this special anniversary year, two £2 coin designs have been officially licensed by the Isle of Man TT with the support of the Mike Haliwood foundation which promotes the TT Races and attracts new riding talent to the meeting.
Only 3,000 of each coin to enter circulation on the Isle of Man
The designs for the 2018 Isle of Man TT £2 coins reference the motorcycle races and Mike Hailwood’s legendary Ducati.
These limited edition £2 coins will be found on the Isle of Man, with only 3,000 entering circulation.
The 2015 Isle of Man TT 50p sold for £500 on eBay. Credit: express.co.uk
In 2015, an Isle of Man TT 50p was released and proved to be extremely popular with collectors, with one selling for £500 on eBay earlier this year.
Due to the popularity of the previous TT coin, we expect that these £2 will be very sought-after by collectors.
And, with only a very limited number entering circulation on the Isle of Man, Isle of Man based Change Checkers are sure to become the envy of collectors everywhere!
Secure your BRAND NEW 2018 International Isle of Man TT £2 coins!
We are delighted to offer these very sought-after coins in Brilliant Uncirculated quality for just £15.99 (+£2.99p&p), so that you don’t miss out on owning these very limited Isle of Man £2 coins for your collection.
Time for change? What is the future for 1p and 2p coins?
*** UPDATE 25.07.24 ***
On 25th July 2024, it was announced that no new 1p and 2p pieces had been ordered from the Royal Mint this year. Despite this, the Treasury has denied that copper coins are to be phased out.
The lack of orders for 1p and 2p coins was due to there being enough of these denominations in circulation already. In fact, there’s an estimated 27 billion coins currently in circulation in the UK, all bearing Queen Elizabeth II’s portrait on the obverse.
A spokesperson for the Treasury said “We are confident there are enough coins in the system without the need to order more this year.”
It’s not unusual for there to be periods where none of these smaller denominations enter circulation. For example, no new 1p coins were put into circulation in 1972, 2018 or 2019, and there were several years in the early 70s and 80s where no new 2p coins were issued for circulation. More recently, no new 2ps have entered circulation since 2018, with the exception of 2021.
With no new copper coins going into circulation this year, that means that there still aren’t any 1p or 2p coins featuring King Charles III on the obverse in circulation. Currently, the only way to secure the new King Charles III 1p and 2p coins is in the New UK Coinage set.
Secure yours for just £32.50 (+p&p) >>
*** UPDATE 03.05.19 ***
This week, the UK Treasury confirmed that 1p and 2p coins will continue to be used “for years to come”.
A year after Chancellor Philip Hammond declared these lower denomination coins ‘obsolete’, their safety has now been secured.
There was much discussion regarding the future of 1p and 2p coins following the Treasury’s doubts over the validity of these coins, as well as the £50 note in the 2018 Spring Statement.
Now that the result of the review has been announced, what do you think about the decision and do you think the pennies should be dropped?
Following the 2018 Spring Statement, a spokesman for Theresa May said that there are no current plans to abolish the coins, however with the increased move towards digital payments, questions still remain as to whether it makes economic sense to continue producing these less frequently used coins and notes.
The Treasury consultation document revealed that The Royal Mint is currently issuing more than 500m 1p and 2p coins each year in order to replace those falling out of circulation.
In fact, six in ten UK 1p and 2p coins are only used once before being saved in a jar or thrown away!
Countries such as Canada, Australia, Brazil and Sweden have already scrapped lower denomination coins that are not in demand and it seems that the UK is also beginning to question the future of these coins as demand continues to fall. But how would you feel about removing 1p and 2p coins from circulation?
Only 15% of consumer spending in 2015 was accounted for by cash, with more and more people now turning to contactless and other digital payments – a trend which is forecast to become the most popular payment method in 2018.
On the other hand, the Treasury also suggested that cash is not obsolete. It’s estimated that 2.7 million people in the UK rely on cash and “It continues to play an important part in the lives of many people and businesses in the UK, whether as a budgeting tool or as a cheap and convenient method of payment”.
With regards to the £50 note, the Treasury says, “There is also a perception among some that £50 notes are used for money laundering, hidden economy activity, and tax evasion”. Despite rarely being used for “routine purchases”, there is still a demand for the £50 note overseas, alongside euros and dollars.
In our 2016 blog post, we asked Change Checkers if they thought it was time to scrap the penny and 53% of you believed we shouldn’t, as it’s part of the British culture.
Has your view now changed and do you think we should make a move towards digital rather than cash payments?
Chris Boyce said, “We have had pennies since 785 AD. I believe it’s one of the oldest coins still being used today. English heritage is being lost everyday…don’t let us loose the penny, 1233 years of history”.
If you’re interested in coin collecting, our Change Checker web app is completely free to use and allows users to:
– Find and identify the coins in their pocket
– Collect and track the coins they have
– Swap their spare coins with other Change Checkers
Sign up today at: www.changechecker.org/app
2017 Quarter 4 Change Checker “Scarcity Index” Released
Following the launch of the Change Checker “Scarcity Index” early last year, the final 2017 Quarter 4 Index has now been published.
50p Scarcity Index
It’s of little surprise that Kew Gardens maintains its top spot as the UK’s most sought after circulation coin with a perfect score of 100.
The mintage figures for the 2017 50p coins were released just before Christmas and have had an effect on the Scarcity Index scores. Interestingly, the Sir Isaac Newton 50p only scores a 3/100 which is lower than we anticipated. This is mainly due to the large number of Change Checkers who list having the coin in their collection. However, we are expecting this score to increase during the next quarter due to the low mintage figure, of just 1.8 million, driving demand.
Jemima Puddle-Duck remains the most scarce Beatrix Potter 50p, with Tom Kitten and Benjamin also scoring quite highly with a score of 13 and 7 respectively. Tom Kitten and Benjamin Bunny were only released into circulation in December so requests for swaps are high. Mintage figures for these coins are also relatively high so as more people find these coins in their change it is possible these scores will decrease slightly.
Interestingly, the mintage figure for the Jeremy Fisher 50p coin has been released, however the coin is not yet in circulation.
£2 Scarcity Index
There’s not a lot of movement in our Quarter 4 £2 “Scarcity Index” update.
The Commonwealth Games Wales £2 coin takes top spot from the Commonwealth Games Northern Ireland. This is down to the very large number of swap requests for this coin in the last quarter. At 99/100 the Northern Ireland coin is still very scarce (as are the other two coins in the Commonwealth Games series) and it’s very possible it will retake the number 1 spot next quarter.
We are still waiting for the Jane Austen and WWI Aviation £2 coins to be released into circulation, hence why they do not feature on our Index. We await the release of these and their mintage figures with great interest, could they be low like the Sir Isaac Newton 50p? It is possible.
How the Scarcity Index works
Generally collectors have had to rely upon mintage figures to identify the scarcest coins. But they only tell part of the story. Trying to find a good quality coin from 15 – 20 years ago, even for a higher mintage issue, is much more challenging than a more recent issue, as coins become damaged over time and are ultimately removed from circulation.
Additionally, some designs are more hoarded than others by people who might not normally collect coins – the recent poignant First World War £2 Coin series being an example. Finally, it can be up to a couple of years before the Royal Mint eventually confirms the actual mintage for an issue.
That’s why we have combined the mintage information with two other key pieces of information.
- How many of each design are listed as “collected” by Change Checkers, indicating the relative ease of finding a particular coin.
- The number of times a design has been requested as a swap over the previous 3 months, showing the current level of collector demand.
Importantly, as new coins are released and popularity rises and falls across different designs the Scarcity Index will be updated quarterly allowing Change Checkers to track the relative performance of the UK’s circulation coins.
How much are my coins worth?
The Scarcity Index does not necessarily equate to value but it is certainly an effective indicator. For example, the Kew Gardens 50p coin commands a premium of up to 160 times face value on eBay.
What about £1 Coins?
The £1 Scarcity Index has already been published for the Round £1 coins and, because they are no longer being issued, this is now set in stone.