“In January, the Royal Mint will begin a programme to recover cupronickel ten pence coins from circulation,” said Nimans’ Dealer Sales Director, Tom Maxwell.
“All new ten pence coins have been made from nickel-plated steel since January 2012 and to date 330 million new coins have been issued into circulation. This programme will not affect the number of coins in circulation and those made of cupronickel alloy will continue to be legal tender.”
But he warned: “These changes will potentially impact the performance of some payphones although all new Solitaire Payphones, exclusively available from Nimans, already accept old and new 10p 20p 50p and £1 coins.”
With the explosion in mobile phone technology resellers could be forgiven for thinking the days of traditional payphones are numbered, but not according to Tom who says when times are tough businesses are always looking for ways to save money and control costs.
“The economic slowdown is fuelling demand for our Solitaire product portfolio – the only new, RoHS compliant payphones available to buy in the UK, as opposed to renting – helping end users consolidate operating costs and call charges.”
Resellers are also being urged to consider the multitude of service locations where they are still required, from counter-top bars to hospitals, hair salons, rented accommodation and care homes.”
Nimans stocks the Solitaire 2000 plug-and-play device, ideal for domestic/ shared /rented accommodation locations where arguments can arise over the telephone bill, the best-selling 6000 model with ‘taxi‘ buttons, auditable cash records and coin refund whilst a 6000 High Security model benefits from a robust steel casing and armoured handset cord.
Tom concluded: “There will always be a need for payphones in environments that may lack mobile phone signals, batteries running down, credit has been used up and also sites where mobiles are just not appropriate. But as far as the new 10p is concerned Solitaire is ahead of the game.”