The Guardia Civil are sounding a warning about foreign coins being circulated that look like euro coins but are worth far less. At a quick glance you wouldn’t notice but shops are on the look out for them so rather than being embarrassed at a supermarket cash out, check your coins when you get them.

These foreign coins look the same as they have brass-coloured exteriors and silver-coloured inners.

In the case of the 5-peso coin from the Dominican Republic, they’re only worth 0.076 euros. The Jamaican 20-dollar coin is worth 0,11 euros (11 euro cents). A Venezuelan Bolivar is only worth 0.19 euros (11 cents) and the Argentinian peso is practically worthless 0.0084 euros (not even a hundredth part of a euro cent.

You have to be careful with the 2-euro coin, as well, as the unscrupulous amongst us are passing off as 2-euro coins, the Thailand bath, and Egyptian pound and the Chilean, 100-peso coins, all of which are worth less than one euro.

Finally, the Spanish, 1-euro coin has either the head of the previous king (Juan Carlos I) or the present one (Felipe VI) but if you don’t know what a euro coin looks like after over 20 years of being in existence, then you’re on a loser anyway.

(News: Spain)