BBC News:
Plastic banknotes that can survive a spin in the washing machine are to be brought into circulation by the Bank of England in 2016.
The Bank argues that the polymer notes stay cleaner and are more secure than cotton paper notes, which have been used for more than 100 years.
The polymer notes are cheaper to make, and said to be more durable:
The Bank has said that these notes last for 2.5 times longer than paper banknotes. They will survive a spin in the washing machine, but will still melt under extreme heat such as an iron.
Presumably, they will hold up to the high heat of a clothes dryer.
The first example of the new currency will be a £5 note featuring Sir Winston Churchill. Next up, a £10 note featuring Jane Austen. The folks who make ATMs will have some retooling to do.
Related: An illustrated history of American money design.
Had these in .au for some years now. There were actually two versions that I know of, the first didn’t stand up to friction too well, the print wore off, especially when wet, they were removed from circulation pretty quick, the ones we have currently are much better, though still show signs of wear and tear, pretty much like the paper notes they replaced, but they are more durable. And they have some nifty anti-counterfeiting measures built in.
One thing I do miss is the feel of a paper note.
We’ve had these in Canada for a few years now. I hardly notice them anymore (then again, thanks to ubiquitous debit cards, i don’t handle cash very often anymore either)
I reckon they’ve been around for over 20 years in Australia. The first was the $10 in 1988, which I think was the one which wore out quickly. What we’ve got now came in not long after that (too lazy to check on Wiki).
No issue in ATM’s that I know off. I’ll happily stand corrected.
Hear, hear on the feel of paper.
I had a chance to look at a variety of foreign currency a few years ago while in the company of several folks from overseas. I was embarrassed by how much more beautiful (and better-designed for readability) their bank notes were than mine.
American currency was designed with the same mindset as stock certificates, and we’ve never gotten away from that. The minor changes we’ve seen here in recent years suggest a committee full of fools who are still trying to cope with the 19th century.
And paper is terrific, but not for this purpose.
I think there is something to be said for the classic, green linen paper money, but, we’ll be going polymer route eventually, too. It’ll be a whole new era in possibilities for US money design,and I’m looking forward to seeing what becomes of it.
Compared to the alternatives out there, I think the green scrollwork has had its day. And polymer or not, I don’t expect our currency designs to get very much better. For such a relatively young country, our government’s design choices are often excessively timid.