They have been printed for 250 years and are prized by collectors – but a veteran bank teller reveals the reason you really don’t want a $2 bill turning up in your change.
The quirky bills – of which there are thought to be 1.5 billion in circulation across the US – is a ‘pain in the butt’ for both bank staff and consumers.
‘When you use them to pay anywhere, they’re just useless,’ the teller told GO BankingRates.
‘The novelty is cute at first, but it’s not so cute when the line is growing behind you at Target.’
The current design, featuring a portrait of Thomas Jefferson, dates from 1928
‘Because $2 bills are so uncommon, a lot of places just don’t accept them,’ the teller said
The first $2 bills rolled off the printing press in 1775 when the Continental Congress authorized their use ‘for the defense of American independence’.
But despite their longevity, many consumers and retailers simply do not recognize them.
‘Because $2 bills are so uncommon, a lot of places just don’t accept them,’ the teller, Rachael P, told the site. ‘Their systems aren’t set up for it, and their employees might not know what to do with them. You could end up with bills that are hard to use.
‘When people do get their hands on a $2 bill, they tend to hold onto it like it’s a four-leaf clover,’ she added.
‘They think it’s cool or lucky. That’s great and all, but it means these bills aren’t really circulating. They’re just gathering dust in people’s keepsake collections.’
The bills’ current design, featuring a portrait of Thomas Jefferson, dates from 1928, but banks are not well equipped to handle them, Rachael revealed.
‘When someone does ask for them, we usually have to special order them, which is honestly a pain in the butt,’ she explained.
‘Our cash drawers are set up for the bills we use every day, you know, ones, fives, tens, twenties. We don’t have a specific spot for $2 bills, so we have to just stick them wherever they fit.
‘It messes up our system and makes it harder to balance everything at the end of the day.
‘Do you know how many days my till has been off by two bucks? More than I’d like to share!’
The nation’s banks see more $2 bills than they would like because businesses are desperate to get them off their hands.
‘If a business does end up with a bunch of $2 bills, they often bring them right back to the bank,’ Rachael said.
‘Then we’re stuck with this surplus of bills that no one wants. It can be really hard to get them back into circulation.
‘It might sound a little goofy, but when we’re counting out cash, we’re in a total zone.
‘We’re used to dealing with the standard bills. But when you throw $2 bills into the mix, it’s like hitting a speed bump. It slows us down and disrupts our rhythm.
There are around 1.5 billion $2 bills in circulation across the US
‘The novelty is cute at first, but it’s not so cute when the line is growing behind you at Target’
‘A lot of the newer tellers have never even seen a $2 bill.
‘When one shows up, they might think it’s fake or a misprint. I’ve had to hop on someone else’s line to help clear it up more than once. It just slows everything down.’
And tellers will not thank you if you ask them to fish one out of the vault.
‘Seriously, you don’t want to be that person,’ Rachael said.
‘Unless you’re a serious collector, it’s best to just leave these quirky bills at the bank.
‘Trust me, your neighborhood teller will thank you.’