Coin Shortage?

[Diabolik]

You have wonder if there aren’t many coins just sitting out there. This reminded me of a story about the Port Authority here in Pittsburgh hoarding something like a million dollars in barrels because they claimed they didn’t have anyone to count it. Knowing this city, some of those coins may still be there. Here is the story.

https://www.post-gazette.com/opinio...-modern-approach-to-cash/stories/200802290234

 

[DanU]

I used to use a debit card for almost everything. These days, I use cash instead whenever possible.
I work in a Farm and Pet Supply store. When the coin shortage was first announced, the bank would only allow us one roll of each denomination per day. We resorted to putting a sign up on the counter, change needed. Many of our regular customers would ask us if we still needed change. They would come back with rolls or bags of coins. From my perspective, with my customer base, it would appear people are saving up coins. Today, we rarely go to the bank for change. Even with the change needed sign down, we get customers who still show up with a bunch of change.
Many of the farmers believe that the government simply wants to do away with currency so the government can track transactions with credit and debit cards.

 

[Martin_V3i]

I used to use a debit card for almost everything. These days, I use cash instead whenever possible.
I work in a Farm and Pet Supply store. When the coin shortage was first announced, the bank would only allow us one roll of each denomination per day. We resorted to putting a sign up on the counter, change needed. Many of our regular customers would ask us if we still needed change. They would come back with rolls or bags of coins. From my perspective, with my customer base, it would appear people are saving up coins. Today, we rarely go to the bank for change. Even with the change needed sign down, we get customers who still show up with a bunch of change.
Many of the farmers believe that the government simply wants to do away with currency so the government can track transactions with credit and debit cards.

Tell me, did your story accept a pile of uncounted coins and actually take time to count it right there, or did they have to have a semi close count in their pile of coins? I never tried walking one of my big peanut jars of cleaned clad in because I could never get a positive answer each time to told then I have nearly a hundred pounds of coins.

 

[Foragist]

I keep a bowl on my dresser for excess coins. Not a big bowl. When it is half full, I am spending my pocket change instead of hanging onto it. Beyond that, it's hoarding. Hoarding coins is a fairly painless way to save up for a vacation or something, but when it becomes hundreds of pounds, it's not so painless anymore. Don't be like that! Cash in before it becomes an excessive burden to physically lift! Buy gold or get large cash bills or maybe even a savings account? Do whatever you want, but massive containers of common coinage doesn't make good sense. Your heirs would rather get a check than 500 pounds of pennies. Way too many people doing this. Now more than ever it seems. So if this is you, why not stop being a part of the problem, and chip in with the solution. Cash in!
Stepping off my little soap box now. My back still hurts from helping a coin hoarder move decades ago!

 

[DanU]

Tell me, did your story accept a pile of uncounted coins and actually take time to count it right there, or did they have to have a semi close count in their pile of coins? I never tried walking one of my big peanut jars of cleaned clad in because I could never get a positive answer each time to told then I have nearly a hundred pounds of coins.

If they aren't rolled, we count them right there. Usually the customer, another employee and I would quickly sort and stack. It goes quickly. Quite often, we don't take the whole amount. Quarters and nickels seem to be what run out of the quickest.

 

[FreeBirdTim]

If there's a coin shortage it's because banks don't want the hassle (and cost) of counting them and hauling them around to all their branches. It's the same reason why casinos got rid of coins and went over to paying out with slips of paper. It saves time, effort and money.

 

[mpmccann]

But, vending machine, parking meter, and concessions/snack bars have all been utilized less as a result of people working and learning from home.

Not to mention about 2 or 3 years ago, all the vending machines around here started taking debit cards too. My work is a perfect example of this. Also Parking meters are being replaced in downtown areas with apps to pay electronically. It is done that way here in my city of Denton TX., and I have seen it in Colorado when we took a vacation. Let’s face it we are moving toward a cashless society and like everything else it will have its pros and cons.

 

[Midknight]

In times of crisis, people save their coins. During the civil war, fractional currency was issued because the silver coins were hoarded and people spent the paper money, which had no intrinsic value.

Now, we have other factors, such as "since a penny isn't worth anything, throw it in a jar rather than carry the darned things around". Unfortunately, the same really applies to just about any coinage now. The only reason I can think of to carry pennies is to tip bad waiters with them.

Also, it's just so much easier to use credit/debit cards.

-- Tom

I still carry coins in one of those 1980s rubber keychain coin holders. Nowadays most don’t carry coins, just cash and cards.

 

[Midknight]

Yep, this is the real issue right now, in my opinion. For me, I never carry change on a day to day basis or while shopping, with the sole exception being that I carry a few quarters, dimes, and nickels in my flight bag in case I need to feed a parking meter while I drive out for lunch/dinner while out on a trip - and I think the same coins have sat in that bag for a couple years now. I most often use plastic to pay for almost everything now, but when I do use cash, I pay with paper only, and any coin change I receive goes straight into a jar when I get home. In other words, I remove coins from the system, and never give back. Assuming I’m not unique, that’s a losing scenario for the mint no matter how much coinage gets released.

It used to be that I would use any change that I happened to have to attempt to make the cashier’s life easier…if my items rang up as $4.10, for example, I’d give them a 5 and a dime so they could just give me a $1 bill back and not count out 90 cents in coins - sadly, I found that often just completely baffled the cashier and melted their brain, so I gave up.

I still coins, but that’s mainly because I don’t like accumulating them. If I end up with too many in the coin pouch I’ll try to use them for gas the next time I go out. I’ve been known to pay for the past few bucks in gas in various coins just to get rid of them. Then again, I also really try not to use cards at gas stations or fast food due to card skimming.

 

[Midknight]

If you really want to melt their brain, give them a Susan B. Anthony dollar.

Ive given cashiers regular Golden dollar coins in the past and that blows some of their minds . And here I thought I was brightening their day.

 

[bmattioli]

All I know is I went to three Coinstar's today and nothing. Not just today but in the past six months nothing and I hit them just like I used to. Folks are not dumping coins for either they don't need the the cash or don't have extra change lying around. I assume the latter.. The days of having a good clad day out detecting is in peril..

 

[maxxkatt]

Ahhh, "The good old days", I used to do that on purpose. I guess it was funny at the time. Now looking back, it was kind of sad!

a lot of the fast food cashiers around here seem to have bit of trouble counting out "correct" change. Of course that could not have anything to do with our public education system.

 

[maxxkatt]

All I know is I went to three Coinstar's today and nothing. Not just today but in the past six months nothing and I hit them just like I used to. Folks are not dumping coins for either they don't need the the cash or don't have extra change lying around. I assume the latter.. The days of having a good clad day out detecting is in peril..

Coinstar has dried up for me for the past year. Maybe, just one silver dime in the past year and even very little clad. mostly foreign coins.

Not sure how they justify placing and maintaining those machines.

 

[diggin4clad]

a lot of the fast food cashiers around here seem to have bit of trouble counting out "correct" change. Of course that could not have anything to do with our public education system.

Same here with cashiers. I can't believe these companies trust some of these people to handle their money. Just think how confused they'd be if they had to figure out how much change to give out if, like years ago, the register didn't show the correct amount.

 

[amc rulz]

My son that worked a drive thru window for a few months brought home 6 silver dimes, 2 buffalos and 25 wheats. At one point, it was just he and his manager running the entire Taco Bell, he finally thru in the towel. My teen daughter is working the McD’s drive thru, she’s brought home a bunch of wheats so far. She asked me the other day if McD’s could buy a few of my quarter rolls as they’re short.

 

[Cherry Picker]

At our Walmart, all the self-checkout lanes only take cards now. I was told it was because there is a coin shortage?

These cheap zincons don't last long also. I got a container full of worthless zinc pennies.

 

[maxxkatt]

back in 1982 the rising price of copper caused the switch from 5% zinc in the penny to 97.5%.

That was a bad decision for the hobby of metal detecting. They should have called in the Hunt brothers to manage the price of copper. Oh I forgot they went bust trying to manage the price of silver.

 

[dixiedigger57]

so many truths on this thread. non of you are politicians i take it

the stores have signs please use plastic due to coin shortage. the banks wont give you but X amount. some we need coins signs. and the parks are slap dang full of zincs... nobody wants them. and then yes, the cashiers cannot count. period. a product of poor parenting and schools not teaching basics of life, not to mention relying on calculators. parks are not replenishing much either. (and jewelry losses in parks not as much and lower quality 10 kt or junk metals). i never see anything much in a coin star machine. paper money germs...look where some people carry it. ...

so our future is bleak.

 

[diggin4clad]

Sometimes on my way to work I stop at the local McD's to get a coffee for the ride in. A "senior" coffee after tax is ninety six cents. When I get the four cents change they always have brand new pennies so I'm pretty sure they're getting the change they need. This past week I stopped in and when I gave the clerk my one dollar bill she asked if I wanted my four cents change. I asked her if they were suddenly short of pennies and she said no, we have pennies but I don't feel like counting out four of them ! How hard is it to count out four pennies? She gave me a nickel back because she was too stinking lazy to count out four pennies ! Or was it that she didn't know how to count to four?

 

[amc rulz]

Let’s face it we are moving toward a cashless society and like everything else it will have its pros and cons.

We’re almost there. Forbes today reported that in 2021, only 19% of transactions were cash, and further cashless volumes are to increase.