In this specific case, a merchant does not have the right to refuse it.
It is not uncommon to find a damaged, crumpled or even slightly torn bank note in a wallet or pocket of clothing, whether due to natural wear or simple clumsiness. While some are delighted at this unexpected discovery, others remain more doubtful. For what ? Because they simply fear that a ticket in poor condition will no longer be valid and will be refused in stores.
And it’s true, this sometimes happens when the merchant doubts the authenticity of the note or judges it to be too damaged. There is nothing worse than finding yourself at the checkout and seeing your payment method rejected in front of other customers. However, if the ticket in question meets a condition, there is no reason why it should no longer have value and should not be accepted. Indeed, few people know it, but if the damaged note retains “a surface greater than 50% of its initial size” then the merchant can cash it in order to be able to exchange it at the Banque de France, explains Masdak, expert in law and finance in his book “Ending scams” (Solar au jour editions). Of course, for this, the ticket must be authentic.
Individuals can also go directly to an establishment that depends on the Banque de France to request that their banknotes be taken back if they are too damaged. In this case, the institution will verify the authenticity of the tickets before exchanging them. The person making the request must also “certify that the deterioration of the ticket is not intentional”specifies the specialist in his work.
If your schedule does not allow you to travel in person, please note that you can also send the ticket(s) by registered mail with acknowledgment of receipt and a letter on honor. In case of doubt, the Banque de France may refuse to exchange it and if the note is a fake, it will then be returned to you. “confiscated without compensation”. Now you know what to do if you have tickets in poor condition that you don’t dare use.