BRITS URGED TO CHECK WALLETS NOW FOR RARE BANK NOTES WORTH THOUSANDS OF POUNDS

With energy bills and food shops still rising, many Brits are having a good pre-Christmas clear out. But when was the last time you checked your change as you could be sitting on a fortune without realising it?

Many households might be listing clothes, gadgets or kids' toys online to squeeze a bit more money out in the run up to the festivities, but now it's worth rummaging through your wallets to see if any of these £5 or £10 notes are in your possession. According to the experts at Playcasion.com, a leading online comparison platform, there's a number of bank notes which are worth more than face value.

Their research shows the big money is flowing into three main areas:

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• The first notes (often starting AA01 or on King Charles notes - CA01/HBo1/EH01/EJ01
• Eye-catching prefixes like the famous AK47
• Extreme number patterns like "444444" or "123456"

On the original plastic £5, experts highlight the earliest AA01 notes. Meanwhile at a Bank of England charity auction, the lowest serial number available in circulation – AA01 000017 – sold for £4,150, with other AA01 notes also selling for loads.

When the Jane Austen polymer £10 launched, an AA01 000010 note went for £7,200, and other early AA01 Austen £10 notes fetched similar four-figure sums, underlining just how keen collectors are to own the first notes off the press.

Meanwhile Instagram user @CoinCollectingWizard always urges households to keep an eye on their change after that £10 note has been seen to flog for over £3,000.

Analysis also suggests the really serious money comes when AK47 is combined with a "fancy" pattern in the digits: a serial like AK47 747474 has been reported selling for around £13,000, while another fiver with all six digits the same – for example 555555 – has allegedly drawn offers in excess of £3,000.

Serial numbers to look out for – and amount sold for:

AA01 000017 – £5 polymer (Churchill): Lowest serial available to the public from the first polymer £5 release; sold at a Bank of England charity auction for £4,150.

AA01 000010 – £10 polymer (Jane Austen): Early Jane Austen £10 from the first AA01 run; sold at Spink for £7,200.

AA01 000007 – £5 polymer (Churchill): One of the very first polymer fivers printed; widely reported as selling for over £20,000 at auction.

AK47 747474 – £5 polymer: "Gun-code" AK47 prefix plus a repeating 74 pattern; reported eBay sale around £13,000.

(Any prefix) 555555 – £5 polymer: All six digits identical; one such fiver with 555555 has reportedly attracted offers above £3,000.

HB01 000002 – £10 King Charles III: Ultra-low serial from the first run of Charles tenners; hammered for £17,000 at auction.

Sheet of 40 × £50 AJ01 – King Charles III: Connected sheet of forty £50 notes with first-prefix AJ01 serials; sold for £26,000 (face value £2,000).

2025-12-08T07:13:29Z