Rare £1 coin featuring bee design could be worth £1,000 to collectors

A mistake in the minting process could bring a surprise windfall for individuals who discover a specific £1 coin among their loose change

People are being urged to check their spare change as a new £1 coin error could see collectors offering up to £1,000 for the lucky find.

The highly sought-after coins, which entered circulation last month, feature a unique bee design but are entirely golden, without the standard silver centre design element.

Coin Collector UK, who boasts over 145,000 TikTok followers, has provided guidance on what to look for.

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The enthusiast explained: "Check all your bee pound coins. Brand new bee £1 coins entered circulation just last month and an extremely rare error has been discovered within a month.

"The error was spotted by a Post Office worker after a delivery of the new coins reached the general public.

"They noticed an all-gold pound coin that had clearly been minted by mistake. Our 12-sided one pound coins are supposed to be gold only around the edge, with a circular silver cupronickel part in the middle."

Although none of these misprinted coins have been auctioned yet, bids could potentially exceed £1,000.

The coin expert concluded: "Errors like this are often snapped up by error collectors, and they aren't cheap.

"They sell potentially for hundreds of pounds, due to their rarity and also the fact that they should not even exist in the first place. The exact price this would sell for is unknown."

According to Birmingham Live, the bee design is part of a new collection of coins "inspired by Britain’s natural habitat".

The Royal Mint unveiled them in early October, with each design "highlighting His Majesty King Charles III’s passion for conservation and the natural world".