March 8th finds: Bank error in your favour…
I went to one of my regular banks yesterday to ask for paper notes. The friendly tellers obliged by showing me a stack of journey $100s and three journey $10s.
One of the tellers then pulled out a 1973 $1 and a birds $2 from the drawer and gave them to me.
When I tried to give him $3 in exchange, he refused it…
Confused, I asked him why he wouldn’t accept my $3. He said that a customer came in the previous day and “handed in” the notes, saying that they were now “worthless”.
I educated the teller by telling him that while the notes have lost legal tender status, all it means is that merchants have the right to refuse payment if you present old currency and that individuals can still obtain full face value for the notes at any financial institution in perpetuity because the notes have not been demonetized.
So, I got $3 free from the bank. I’m keeping these two notes in my collection just because of the story behind them.
Enjoy,
Dean