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A RARE coin which was released to mark Prince Charles’ 60th birthday has sold for £120 online.
The circulated fiver has the lowest mintage in the history of UK £5 coins with just over 14,000 in circulation, according to website Change Checker.
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This means it’s even more valuable as it’s so rare.
In comparison, a £5 coin released in 2000 to mark the Queen Month’s centenary has a mintage of more than three million.
A £5 coin to mark the Battle of Trafalgar in 2005 meanwhile has a mintage of more than one million.
It’s not clear how much the Prince Charles coin, which was released in 2008, is now worth, however other coins on the online auction have sold for between £9.57 to £49.95.
At a final sale price of £119.99, it’s currently the most expensive £5 2008 Prince Charles coin sold on eBay’s listings and was sold under the buy it now option, rather than being won in an auction.
The shipping cost £7.50 as it was a Royal Mail special delivery item.
The silver proof piedfort coin, which is double the thickness of a regular coin, was the 178th coin produced and was in perfect condition, according to the eBay listing.
To protect the coin, the seller has also kept it in a clear casing to stop it from getting damaged.
Typically, coins in the best conditions sell for more as many collectors like them to be in a near-mint state.
Of course, we can’t be sure that the seller ever received the cash but it hasn’t been relisted, which indicates that the sale was likely to be legitimate.
If you’ve got one of the coins at home and you’re thinking of selling it, you should consider getting it verified by the Royal Mint as it could push up the price even more.
They won’t be able to value it for you but they can provide you with a letter to confirm that it is legitimate.
To find out how much it’s worth, you can send it off to be valued by an auction house.
Or you can check to see how much they sell for on eBay by looking at the sold listings to give you a realistic idea of what yours is worth.
Also remember to factor in listing fees before deciding whether to sell the coin.
Websites like changechecker.org and coinhunter.co.uk might also be able to give you an idea of how valuable your coin is.
The dangers of selling your coins on eBay
THE most valuable coins are usually those that have low mintage numbers or those with an error.
These are often deemed the most valuable by collectors.
Once you’ve found out whether the coin is real or not, you have a number of options – either selling it through a coin dealer, at auction or on eBay.
Sell it at auction
If you’ve got a coin that you would like to sell at auction then you can contact a member of the British Numismatic Trade Association.
They usually deal in very old coins but they may be able to help you assess whether it’s worth selling your coin at auction or whether it would be valuable to a collector.
Sell it on eBay
If you want to sell the coin you’ve found in your spare change on eBay then you need to know the risks.
Remember to set a minimum price that is higher or at the very least equal to the face value of the coin.
Even if your coin “sells” on eBay for a high price there’s no guarantee that the buyer will cough up.
In its terms and conditions, the auction website states that bidders enter a “legally binding contract to purchase an item”, but there’s no way to enforce this rule in reality.
The most eBay can do is add a note to the buyer’s account about the unpaid item or remove their ability to bid and buy.
This is because in order to sign up to the website, users do not need to put in valid bank or PayPal details before making a bid.
If a bidder refuses to pay, then the only option for sellers is to give “second chance offers” to other bidders or relist the item.
For items of a high value, eBay recommends that sellers put a limit on their listing to approve bidders.
It means bidders must email you before placing a bid but NOT that they must pay out the cash if they win.
Even though £5 coins aren’t widely used, they could still be worthy of an investment.
A £5 Queen Anne coin was predicted to go to £50 in 2017.
And a commemorative coin celebrating The Snowman cost a tenner when it was released at Christmas in 2018, but it later sold for up to £30 on eBay.
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A 50p Kew Gardens coin recently sold for £250 on eBay.
The Royal Mint is also planning to release a Winnie the Pooh 50p to mark Pooh’s 100th birthday.
And here are the 12 most valuable £2 in circulation – from Magna Carta to the Commonwealth Games.
