A Dog Severely Damaged a Large Banknote, But It Was Still Accepted. In What Cases Should You Not Despair?
A dog severely chewed a 100 Belarusian ruble banknote, tearing off a part of it, but the owner was able to exchange the damaged money at "Belarusbank" and received a new banknote. A video of this story went viral on TikTok. It turns out that severely damaged Belarusian money can indeed be exchanged at a bank in certain cases, Myfin.by explains .
The external appearance of a banknote alone does not determine whether it can be exchanged. Bank employees check what part of the banknote has been preserved, whether it can be established that all fragments belong to a single banknote, and whether there are any doubts about its authenticity.
According to current rules, a damaged Belarusian banknote can be exchanged if at least 55% of its original area has been preserved. Therefore, even a banknote that looks very heavily damaged may still be suitable for exchange.
The rules provide for several types of damage under which a banknote may be accepted. For example, if it has lost part of its area but retained at least 55%, is torn into parts that can be identified as belonging to a single banknote, has tears, holes, or damaged edges. Banknotes damaged by water, fire, or other effects can also be exchanged if their authenticity can be determined by their main features. The final decision is made by the bank after checking the specific banknote.
However, a damaged banknote cannot be turned into two. If, for example, a 20 ruble banknote is torn in half and both parts are brought to the bank, employees will check if they indeed belong to a single banknote. If all conditions for exchange are met, the owner will receive one new 20 ruble banknote, not two. The mere fact of physical damage does not increase the value of the money.
Different rules apply to foreign currency. It cannot automatically be assumed that a bank is obligated to exchange a damaged dollar or euro for a new banknote in the same way as Belarusian rubles. The acceptance and exchange of damaged foreign currency depend on the rules of the specific bank and the requirements of the issuing bank. In some cases, the bank may accept such a banknote for additional examination or collection, and this service may be subject to a fee.
Therefore, heavily damaged money should not be immediately discarded. If a banknote was chewed by an animal, accidentally torn, went through a washing machine, or was damaged in another way, it is best to keep all parts and show them to the bank. It may still be possible to exchange the banknote.
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