Your £2 coin could be worth more if it has ‘weird smudge’ in corner

Over the years, it’s becoming less and less likely that we’re carrying a couple of quid in our back pocket.

Even most corner shops let you pay with card without a minimum spend anymore - meaning cards are the main way most of us will spend our precious pennies nowadays.

But coins still exist, obviously. And when you next get your hands on the odd bit of cash, it’s worth having a proper look at what you’ve got.

That’s because some coins can be worth a lot more than you think.

Such as these super rare £2 pieces from 2015, the ‘Navy’ design minted to commemorate the centenary of the First World War.

According to Change Checker, it was one of the rarest £2 coins with just 650,000 struck for circulation.

However, some of the same (but not the same) coins are even rarer if you manage to get your hands on one.

Royal Mint

So, the original Navy design features a big old ship sailing the seas, complete with waves and little birds in the background.

But there’s a number of coins out there that look a little like they have a flying flag on top of the mast.

Except that’s not supposed to be there, it’s a slight error that has made the coin even more valuable.

When the coins are being made into these designs, sometimes a failing, or defective die can cause little pools of metal to form.

But because of the error coins looking like there’s just a flag on them, people began to speculate it was a second variation of the coin.

So now both the rare original Navy 2015 coins and the ones with this ‘weird smudge’ are going for quite the bounty over on eBay.

Change Checker

People are flogging them for all sorts from a fiver to over £8 – four times its regular worth, you know, in case you didn’t work that out.

And then there’s the slightly wilder people charging the likes of £62.95, £50, £70 and more for the error coins. Oh, and there’s one seller actually trying to get bids from £2,500.

But obviously people can just ask for whatever amounts on there – so if you are looking for one, don’t be quick to pay too much.

Just next time you find yourself with a random £2 coin – maybe your nan has slipped it into your pocket or you’ve spotted it on the street – give it a nice little examine to check its worth. There’ll be a coin collector out there gagging to nab it.

Topics: UK News, Money

Jess Battison

Jess is an Entertainment Journalist with a love of all things pop culture. Her main interests include keeping up with the Twitter girlies, waiting for a new series of The Traitors and losing her voice at a Beyoncé concert. She graduated with a first in Journalism from City, University of London in 2021 and has previously worked at MyLondon.

@jessbattison_