Your rare coins could soon be valued by the Royal Mint – and they could even help you sell them too!
THERE has been a lot of hype about some coins that could be worth THOUSANDS of pounds more than their value.
In recent months, The Sun Online’s inbox has been flooded with emails from readers who think they’ve found a rare - and possibly valuable - coin.
Meanwhile, hundreds of new £1 coins have been listed on eBay with sellers claiming they too are rare.
So if you are wondering if a small fortune is stuffed down the back of your sofa or inside your pocket it appears the Royal Mint might soon be able to help.
The government owned coin maker has announced that it is considering offering valuations as part of its future strategy to grow in the collecting market.
This would mean it will be able to give you the price of your coin and it could help you sell it.
At present, The Royal Mint doesn’t offer the service to customers - it can only confirm whether your coin is legit and not counterfeit.
Instead Brits who think they have a rare coin need to contact a member of the British Numismatic Trade Association.
But a spokesperson for The Royal Mint confirmed to the told the Sun Online that along with sales of coins, it is considering offering the service in the future due to growing interest from customers.
It added that no further information about when the service could be launched or whether customers will be charged for it, could be disclosed at present.
The move comes as the Royal Mint announced it bought a stake in Sovereign Rarities Limited, a coin dealership based in Mayfair, as first reported by This is Money.
Sovereign Rarities is comprised of a team of coin specialists, collectively with over one hundred years of experience. The business is also a member of the British Numismatic Trade Association (BNTA).
The partnership marks the first time the Royal Mint has taken a slice in a historic coin dealer business and mean The Royal Mint will now be able to offer a range of historic coins.
Think you’ve got a rare coin? Here’s our guide to find out if it’s worth a mint and cash in
As a general rule of thumb, the rarer the coin the more valuable it is, and experts at Changechecker.org have created a scarcity index that tracks which circulating £2 coins are the most scarce and collectable.
We’ve also published a £1 scarcity index, so you can find out the value of each of the 24 £1 coin designs, and a 50p scarcity index, which reveals the 50p pieces that are worth £100.
What do you do if you've got a rare coin?
FIRSTLY, you need to make sure the coin is legit and not counterfeit.
Around one in every four old £1 coins were thought to be fake, according to the Royal Mint, so there are probably more fakers in your spare change then you realise.
The Royal Mint is unable to value a coin but it can confirm whether it is real or not. They will usually supply you with a letter to confirm this.
Once you’ve found out whether the coin is real or not, you have a number of options – either selling it through a coin dealer, at auction or on eBay.
We have also previously shown you which error coins can bag you the most dosh, including the 2012 London Olympics Aquatics 50p coin which could fetch more than £1,000.
In May, an ultra-rare silver 2p error coin was found by a collector in Kent, and it could be worth a whopping £1,350.
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