CHARLOTTE, N.C. — When is the last time you paid for anything with coins? Many people are now swiping cards instead of using cash, but what does that mean for Mr. Abe Lincoln?
At Hyatt Coins, you will find some of the rarest coins in Charlotte. Though some of these coins date back to the 1700s, it's a good place to find out whether the coins we use today are also becoming rare.
WCNC Charlotte's VERIFY team has received numerous calls into our newsroom asking if there is a coin shortage.
THE QUESTION
Is there a coin shortage?
OUR SOURCES
THE ANSWER
Yes, there is a shortage of coins circulating in the economy, but not because there aren't enough coins. It's because there aren't enough people using them.
WHAT WE FOUND
"We are defiantly experiencing a coin shortage," Hyatt said.
Hyatt explained that he has seen a decrease in coins, so much so that local businesses are coming to his shop asking for them.
"There are certainly a lot of businesses that are unable to get the coins that they are making to get the cash operation to make change," Hyatt said.
What's with the low change? According to the State of the Coin Report published in February, fewer coins are circulating, not only because of the pandemic but also because more people are only swiping their cards. The report states there isn't a shortage of coins being produced, suggesting most coins that are in circulation are sitting dormant inside Americans' homes. That's creating a problem for people who still pay with cash and need exact change from the register.
"Older people who are more accustomed to and fall back on that by habit, people that don't have credit and debit cards that don't use electronic payments, it really hurts them because they get short-changed," Hyatt said.
Contact Meghan Bragg at mbragg@wcnc.com and follow her on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
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