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Advice
for Retailers
Retailers
are vitally important to the success of Banknote Watch. If the
criminal cannot spend the stained notes he has stolen, he will
not have the incentive to try again. This reduces the incidences
of armed robbery on fellow retailers!!
If
you are offered a stained note by a member of the public:
- Stained
notes should be treated as mutilated/damaged notes and should
not be accepted.
- Customers
should be advised to take stained notes to the nearest Bank
or Post office and obtain the appropriate application form for
the repayment of damaged notes.
- For
Bank of England notes, this form is ‘BEMN’
- The
completed form, together with the damaged notes, should be sent
to the Bank of England, Dept. MN, King Street, Leeds, LS1 1HT
- On
receipt, and subject to confirmation that the note is genuine,
the customer can reasonably expect the repayment to be processed
promptly
- Scottish
and Northern Ireland note issuing banks use different forms
and procedures, enquiries should be made at the appropriate
issuing bank
If
you are given a stained note by your Bank or Building Society:
- Alert
the Bank staff immediately, and accept only clean notes.
You
and your customers:
- Remember,
your customers may refuse to accept a stained note, avoid confrontation
by removing them from the till as soon as possible.
- Remember
that every situation will be different; your safety, and the
safety of staff and customers must always come first.
- If
you feel intimidated, take a full description of the person
that gave you the note and pass this information on to your
local police station.
If
you obtain a stained note:
- Do
not worry, you will not lose your money by handing in a stained
note.
- Take
it to a Bank, Building Society or Post Office. They stock the
form BEMN which you use to return the banknote to the Bank of
England. You will then obtain a refund of the face value, provided
the note is genuine.
- Your
Bank or Building Society will be happy to assist you in this
matter as part of their customer service procedures.
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If
you use a Cash in Transit service:
- Do
not pass on stained notes. Your CIT carrier my refuse to accept
them.
- Seek
the advice of your carrier, they will be pleased to assist you.
For
further details or to obtain a Banknote Watch information pack,
FACTFILE, public awareness poster
and advice to retailers leaflet please contact Alan
Townsend, Banknote Watch Co-ordinator.
Counterfeit Banknotes
Banknote Watch
is primarily concerned with notes that have been stained in the
process of being stolen using cash degradation systems, however,
we frequently receive enquiries regarding counterfeit banknotes.
In
order to help visitors to our website an article has been included
on the FACTFILE page entitled ‘Know
Your Banknotes’, which gives clear advice on how Bank of England
notes can be checked quickly.
www.crimestoppers-uk.org
Crimestoppers
Trust, set up in 1988 is the only UK charity aimed at putting
criminals behind bars through an anonymous Freephone number: 0800
555 111. Callers with information on crime are not asked their
name. This anonymity is the key to the scheme's success, because
it provides callers with complete safety from any reprisals.
Your
call is free • You do not have to give your name • You
may receive a reward.
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