Tesco has announced it would continue accepting round £1 pound coins after they cease to become legal tender from Sunday.
The supermarket giant follows high street chain Poundland and 170,000 small retailers across the country who intend to ignore the Royal Mint‘s deadline to stop accepting the coins.
Poundland plans to accept the round pound coins until October 31.
A Tesco spokesperson said: “We’ve been updating our systems ready for the new pound coins, but to help customers who still have the old coins, we’ll continue to accept round pounds at our tills and self-service machines for an additional week.”
From Sunday, shops will no longer be allowed to hand out round £1 coins as change and they also have the right to refuse them as payment.
However, there are no rules stopping shops – which are able to bank old £1 coins long after this date – from accepting the old coins after Sunday if they want to.
Despite this, the Royal Mint and the Treasury have said they want to avoid potential chaos and want a “clean break”.
The new 12-sided £1 coin came into circulation in March in an attempt to combat counterfeits, and businesses have been given six months to adapt it.
It is thought that 500 million round £1 coins remain in circulation.
Chief executive and deputy master of the Royal Mint Adam Lawrence said: “The round pound has been in circulation for over 30 years but, as the deadline approaches, we are keen to encourage everyone to track down their final coins and use them.
“As the deadline is triggered, we are proud that the security features on the 12-sided £1 coin will help to safeguard our currency for years to come.”
