Yesterday’s Gravesend Messenger Newspaper had this story which I thought had an amusing twist especially as only the Bus Driver it seems had an understanding of English Law!
Actually, according to the Bank of England, Scottish banknotes are NOT legal tender in England. English banknotes issued by the Bank Of England are the ONLY legal tender in England and Wales.
Here is what the Bank Of England website has to say:-
Are Scottish & Northern Ireland notes “legal tender”?
In short ‘No’ these notes are not “legal tender”; furthermore, Bank of England notes are only legal tender in England and Wales. Legal tender has, however, a very narrow technical meaning in relation to the settlement of debt. If a debtor pays in legal tender the exact amount he/she owes under the terms of a contract (and in accordance with its terms), or pays this amount into court, he/she has good defence in law if he/she is sued for non-payment of the debt.
In ordinary everyday transactions, the term “legal tender” in its purest sense need not govern a note’s acceptability in transactions. The acceptability of a Scottish or Northern Ireland note as a means of payment is essentially a matter for agreement between the parties involved. If both parties are in agreement, Scottish and Northern Ireland notes can be used in England and Wales. Holders of genuine Scottish and Northern Ireland notes are provided with a level of protection similar to that provided to holders of Bank of England notes. This is because the issuing banks must back their note issue using a combination of Bank of England notes, UK coin and funds in an interest bearing bank account at the Bank of England. More information on these arrangements can be found at
Here is the link to this item on the Bank of England website >>> http://www.bankofengland.co.uk/banknotes/Pages/about/faqs.aspx#16
Now here is that report from Kent:-
Northfleet bus passenger told to take the high road as Scottish banknote gets rebuffed on Arriva service to Stone
Heard the one about the Englishman, the Welsh pub and a Scottish fiver?
Well, it was no joke for Graham Sales when his note was rejected by a bus driver as he tried to board outside the Welsh Tavern in Stone.
The taxi driver was attempting to get home to Northfleet after dropping his car off for repairs at St Johns Road Garage.
Taxi driver Graham Sales with his Scottish £5 note
He hopped aboard and handed over the £5 Scottish note, only to be told by the driver she would not accept it.
The 47-year-old said: “The bus driver said she knew it was legal tender, but couldn’t accept it.
“She said ‘I’m not moving’ and I said ‘well, I’m not going anywhere’.”
The father-of-two said the driver turned the engine off and phoned the depot.
Bosses agreed to her issuing a ticket for £2 rather than the fare of about £3.50 as that was all he had in change.
“I felt disgusted and embarrassed. If I hadn’t had any change on me, it would have been a five-mile walk and taken me hours…” – bus passenger Graham Sales
He said: “I felt disgusted and embarrassed. If I hadn’t had any change on me, it would have been a five-mile walk and taken me hours.
“I showed I was willing to pay and she took all my remaining change. It was all the money I had on me.
“It is legal tender and I am a taxi driver and I have to take it.”
Once Mr Sales got off the bus, he spoke to a senior member of staff at the depot who confirmed the ticket machine did not have the facilities to recognise the currency – but agreed the bus driver should have accepted it.
Mr Sales now plans to make the bus journey back to Stone to collect his car and will be using the £5 note as a point of principle.
Arriva spokesman Linsey Frostick apologised, saying: “We do accept Scottish banknotes and on this occasion the driver was mistaken.
“The details have been passed to the depot manager so the driver can be made aware of their mistake.”
Here is the link to the story >>> http://www.kentonline.co.uk/gravesend_messenger/news/passenger-told-to-take-the-8157/
As Wikipedia reminds us (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arriva) Arriva is a multinational public transport company headquartered in Sunderland, and (is) a wholly owned subsidiary of Deutsche Bahn. The latter is Deutsche Bahn AG is the German railway company, a private joint-stock company (AG) with the Federal Republic of Germany being its majority shareholder with its headquarters in Berlin. It came into existence in 1994 as the successor to the former state railways of Germany, the Deutsche Bundesbahn of West Germany and the Deutsche Reichsbahn of East Germany.
Is it any wonder that England is in a mess when even our bus companies are indirectly owned by foreign states?