# UK Self-service check outs - is there a limit on how many coins they will take? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [May 14, 2013, 9:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uk-self-service-check-outs-is-there-a-limit-on-how-many-coins-they-will-take/658302 "2013-05-14T09:46:53Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Cinnamon\_Imp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/58956e/32.png) [@Cinnamon\_Imp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cinnamon_Imp)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2013, 9:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uk-self-service-check-outs-is-there-a-limit-on-how-many-coins-they-will-take/658302/1 "2013-05-14T09:46:53Z")
So, after over two years of picking up dropped coins, I finally smashed the money pot, and have a grand total of over £37, including 500 pennies, 186 two pence coins, 107 5p pieces, 12 ten pences, 16 20ps, two 50ps, and 18 £1 coins. Does anyone have any idea how big the coin reservoirs at the self service check outs at Tescos and Morrisons are? I don’t think I’d take them all along in one go (too heavy!) but could I get away with say, taking the five bags with all the pennies along, to get a fiver off my shopping? 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Keeve](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/f07891/32.png) [@Keeve](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Keeve)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2013, 10:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uk-self-service-check-outs-is-there-a-limit-on-how-many-coins-they-will-take/658302/2 "2013-05-14T10:08:23Z")
My presumption is that they’d be similar to any other vending machine, so that a pocketful should be no problem, but the whole bottle probably would be. Why not split it up into several trips instead of spending them all in one go? (I’m presuming that the British machines are the same as American ones.) ---
**Author:** ![sandra\_nz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/eada6e/32.png) [@sandra\_nz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sandra_nz)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2013, 10:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uk-self-service-check-outs-is-there-a-limit-on-how-many-coins-they-will-take/658302/3 "2013-05-14T10:34:35Z")
I’m pretty sure there’s no limit, and it’s a much better way to use up your coins compared to those Coinstar machines that take an 8% cut! [Lifehacker article on using coins at self service](http://www.lifehacker.com.au/2011/05/get-rid-of-excess-coins-at-self-serve-supermarket-checkouts/) ---
**Author:** ![SanVito](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sanvito/32/2805_2.png) [@SanVito](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SanVito)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2013, 11:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uk-self-service-check-outs-is-there-a-limit-on-how-many-coins-they-will-take/658302/4 "2013-05-14T11:29:04Z")
Or you could do that weird retro thing of taking them to a bank. ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2013, 12:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uk-self-service-check-outs-is-there-a-limit-on-how-many-coins-they-will-take/658302/5 "2013-05-14T12:22:00Z")
> [@SanVito](#): > > Or you could do that weird retro thing of taking them to a bank. Only the first three items on the OP’s list are there in sufficient quantity to be banked - to bank coins in the UK, the expectation is that they will be sorted and bagged, each bag containing one of the following: £20 in £2 coins £20 in £1 coins £10 in 50p coins £10 in 20p coins £5 in 10p coins £5 in 5p coins £1 in 2p coins £1 in 1p coins Most banks will probably turn away an adult trying to bank coins in any other presentation than whole unmixed bags. ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2013, 12:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uk-self-service-check-outs-is-there-a-limit-on-how-many-coins-they-will-take/658302/6 "2013-05-14T12:25:06Z")
> [@Cinnamon\_Imp](#): > > Does anyone have any idea how big the coin reservoirs at the self service check outs at Tescos and Morrisons are? I don’t think I’d take them all along in one go (too heavy!) but could I get away with say, taking the five bags with all the pennies along, to get a fiver off my shopping? 🙂 You’re unlikely to overflow the coin boxes in the self serve tills, but if you’re feeding the thing coins for half an hour, one or two other things might happen: [ul] [li]The machine might time out in some way (and if this happens, the transaction will probably have to be completed at the customer service desk)[/li][li]The staff manning\* the unmanned tills (\*no, really) might get huffy or suspicious.[/li][/ul] ---
**Author:** ![Cinnamon\_Imp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/58956e/32.png) [@Cinnamon\_Imp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cinnamon_Imp)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2013, 5:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uk-self-service-check-outs-is-there-a-limit-on-how-many-coins-they-will-take/658302/7 "2013-05-14T17:22:08Z")
> [@Keeve](#): > > My presumption is that they’d be similar to any other vending machine, so that a pocketful should be no problem, but the whole bottle probably would be. Why not split it up into several trips instead of spending them all in one go? > > (I’m presuming that the British machines are the same as American ones.) Yes, the whole jar would be too heavy to carry around in one go, I was planning several trips, thanks! > [@sandra\_nz](#): > > I’m pretty sure there’s no limit, and it’s a much better way to use up your coins compared to those Coinstar machines that take an 8% cut! > > [Lifehacker article on using coins at self service](http://www.lifehacker.com.au/2011/05/get-rid-of-excess-coins-at-self-serve-supermarket-checkouts/) Ta! That also hints “you might encounter an upper limit of coins that will be accepted” - I guess I just try it and see what happens. > [@SanVito](#): > > Or you could do that weird retro thing of taking them to a bank. The bank that I have my account with doesn’t have a physical branch in my town. Which thanks to ATMS and online banking, isn’t normally a problem, but is in this weird retro case. > [@Mangetout](#): > > Only the first three items on the OP’s list are there in sufficient quantity to be banked - to bank coins in the UK, the expectation is that they will be sorted and bagged, each bag containing one of the following: > > £20 in £2 coins > £20 in £1 coins > £10 in 50p coins > £10 in 20p coins > £5 in 10p coins > £5 in 5p coins > £1 in 2p coins > £1 in 1p coins > > Most banks will probably turn away an adult trying to bank coins in any other presentation than whole unmixed bags. I did not know that - thanks! I also heard that you have to have an account with them, so randomly walking into one of the other three banks who do have branches in my town wouldn’t go down so well 🙂 > [@Mangetout](#): > > You’re unlikely to overflow the coin boxes in the self serve tills, but if you’re feeding the thing coins for half an hour, one or two other things might happen: > [ul] > [li]The machine might time out in some way (and if this happens, the transaction will probably have to be completed at the customer service desk)[/li][li]The staff manning\* the unmanned tills (\*no, really) might get huffy or suspicious.[/li][/ul] I know the staff you mean, I usually have to call them over for whatever coupons or vouchers I’ve got 🙂 In Scotland they’d hopefully just admire my frugality rather than get huffy, but you never know! I worry more about taking them to a bank, and getting the bags inspected by a huffy cashier who rejects some of the more streetworn coins I’ve collected. I can take rejection much better when an anonymous machine spits them out, rather than get accused of trying to pass off forged coins 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2013, 7:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uk-self-service-check-outs-is-there-a-limit-on-how-many-coins-they-will-take/658302/8 "2013-05-14T19:39:53Z")
I’ve [some experience](http://www.atomicshrimp.com/st/content/project_ebenezer/) in banking found money. As long as it’s the right quantity of the right coins in the bag, they’ll usually weigh and accept it without worrying about the condition. Some of the pennies I find on the road are very mangled, but as long as they’re not worn away to the point they weigh less, they’ll be OK for banking in a bagged lot. ---
**Author:** ![md2000](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/73ab20/32.png) [@md2000](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/md2000)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2013, 10:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uk-self-service-check-outs-is-there-a-limit-on-how-many-coins-they-will-take/658302/9 "2013-05-14T22:05:25Z")
The coin receptacles I’ve seen in typical soft drink vending machines would likely be about 1 to 2 litres. I assume they empty them each night in a busy store. I would imagine the coin boxes in the checkouts would be comparable. Of course, in Canada a lot of larger purchases are done with debit card… so no need for excessive coin handling. I like self-checkouts to change my $50 bills. The question is do these check-out machines try to capture and sort the coins, or just drop them into one coinbox - and the cashiers sort and fill the change unit slots at the beginning of the day. (This is how I imagine them working). A litre of coins is a LOT of coins, even if they are pennies. ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2013, 8:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uk-self-service-check-outs-is-there-a-limit-on-how-many-coins-they-will-take/658302/10 "2013-05-15T08:04:00Z")
The coins probably sort into tubes, but when the tubes are full, they’ll all overflow into a big mixed bin and I expect the contents of this will be later sorted and counted by machine - probably not on site. ---
**Author:** ![suranyi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e36b37/32.png) [@suranyi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/suranyi)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2013, 6:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uk-self-service-check-outs-is-there-a-limit-on-how-many-coins-they-will-take/658302/11 "2013-05-15T18:20:56Z")
One great thing about those self-service checkout machines, as opposed to most regular vending machines, is that they take pennies. At least in the U.S. So when I discover I have a lot of leftover pennies, I use them up at the supermarket at the self-checkout. They count them patiently without complaining. ---
**Author:** ![Cinnamon\_Imp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/58956e/32.png) [@Cinnamon\_Imp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cinnamon_Imp)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2013, 6:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uk-self-service-check-outs-is-there-a-limit-on-how-many-coins-they-will-take/658302/12 "2013-05-15T18:29:21Z")
Thanks guys - I managed to spend the 100 five pence coins (plus a few others) in one self-service machine at Sainsburies today without any major issues. I blushed furiously the whole time, as the till attendants bustled round me removing baskets and replenishing bags, but they didn’t say a word, not even when I had to put some of the more battered coins through a few times to get them accepted. I’ll start on the coppers tomorrow 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Cinnamon\_Imp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/58956e/32.png) [@Cinnamon\_Imp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cinnamon_Imp)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2013, 12:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uk-self-service-check-outs-is-there-a-limit-on-how-many-coins-they-will-take/658302/13 "2013-05-22T12:34:17Z")
In the interests of fighting ignorance, I’m coming back to report that I’ve now got rid of all the coins listed above, and didn’t have any difficulty with the quantity I spent at each visit (up to 250 coins in one session). However, quality was an issue, and I \*might \*have crashed a machine more than once with coins that had been run over and weren’t as flat as they should have been. The ones the machines didn’t accept have been snuck into charity boxes to be Someone Elses Problem 😉 ---
**Author:** ![RobDog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/f07891/32.png) [@RobDog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RobDog)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2013, 1:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uk-self-service-check-outs-is-there-a-limit-on-how-many-coins-they-will-take/658302/14 "2013-05-22T13:45:34Z")
> [@Cinnamon\_Imp](#): > > In the interests of fighting ignorance, I’m coming back to report that I’ve now got rid of all the coins listed above, and didn’t have any difficulty with the quantity I spent at each visit (up to 250 coins in one session). However, quality was an issue, and I \*might \*have crashed a machine more than once with coins that had been run over and weren’t as flat as they should have been. > > The ones the machines didn’t accept have been snuck into charity boxes to be Someone Elses Problem 😉 For future reference, HSBC have Coinstar type machines in some branches that take any amount of mixed coins and will pay them directly into your (HSBC) account without commission. I’ve banked over £180 of coins in one go that way. Maybe if you know someone with an HSBC account they’d cash them in for you? ---
**Author:** ![Cinnamon\_Imp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/58956e/32.png) [@Cinnamon\_Imp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cinnamon_Imp)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2013, 1:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uk-self-service-check-outs-is-there-a-limit-on-how-many-coins-they-will-take/658302/15 "2013-05-22T13:51:45Z")
Thanks for the tip, if I get that big a collection again I’ll ask about my friends to see if anyone has an account there (I see HSBC do have a branch in Glasgow) but I think I’ll regularly just ditch them in the self-service supermarket machines every month or so to stop it building up so much 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![sandra\_nz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/eada6e/32.png) [@sandra\_nz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sandra_nz)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2013, 4:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uk-self-service-check-outs-is-there-a-limit-on-how-many-coins-they-will-take/658302/16 "2013-05-22T16:13:52Z")
I have an HSBC account and will happily accept your coins, **Cinnamon Imp**. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Cinnamon\_Imp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/58956e/32.png) [@Cinnamon\_Imp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cinnamon_Imp)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2013, 6:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uk-self-service-check-outs-is-there-a-limit-on-how-many-coins-they-will-take/658302/17 "2013-05-22T18:07:14Z")
It’s true, Dopers really are a kind and generous bunch 😉 ---
**Author:** ![ftg](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ftg/32/2801_2.png) [@ftg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ftg)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2013, 8:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uk-self-service-check-outs-is-there-a-limit-on-how-many-coins-they-will-take/658302/18 "2013-05-22T20:58:44Z")
FYI, here in the states, our local CoinStars have the option of an Amazon gift code at full value, no fees. And maybe some other online places but I’ve only done Amazon. ---
**Author:** ![Cinnamon\_Imp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/58956e/32.png) [@Cinnamon\_Imp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cinnamon_Imp)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2013, 5:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uk-self-service-check-outs-is-there-a-limit-on-how-many-coins-they-will-take/658302/19 "2013-05-23T17:12:51Z")
Yes, it’s a shame Coinstar UK doesn’t do that. ---
**Author:** ![Dead\_Cat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/9fc29f/32.png) [@Dead\_Cat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dead_Cat)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2013, 6:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uk-self-service-check-outs-is-there-a-limit-on-how-many-coins-they-will-take/658302/20 "2013-05-24T18:07:25Z")
FTR, my bank (NatWest) also has a deposit machine where you can dump a load of mixed coins in and it will count them for you, to be deposited straight into your account. This was most useful when we opened our wedding fund jar a couple of years ago, though the machine wasn’t quite good enough to take it all first time - took 2 or 3 goes to get it all in, but still much easier than either sorting and bagging, or slotting into a checkout one at a time! [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uk-self-service-check-outs-is-there-a-limit-on-how-many-coins-they-will-take/658302.md?page=2)