Customers using cash to pay for their shopping have been given a six-month warning ahead of the deadline for using paper notes in stores.

The Bank of England has issued a warning to shoppers ahead of the September 30 deadline whereby paper £20 and £50 notes will no longer be able to accepted. 

Anyone using paper notes to pay for items in all retailers including Tesco, Asda, Aldi, Lidl, M&S and Morrisons will have their transaction rejected.

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The current paper notes in circulation were first issued in 2007, and features the economist Adam Smith. 

Polymer £20 notes were first introduced in February 2020 with polymer £50's being issued in June 2021. 

Hampshire Chronicle: The polymer £20 note. Credit: PAThe polymer £20 note. Credit: PA

The paper notes have slowly been phased out in exchange for polymer notes which are more durable, have a greater number of security features and are harder to counterfeit.

People can exchange their paper notes at banks and Post Office branches across the country and the Bank of England will always exchange old notes for new, even after the September 30 deadline.