Claim Requirements

Claims Service – Eligibility

The Reserve Bank provides a claims service (the Damaged Banknotes Facility) to holders of incomplete or badly damaged/contaminated Australian banknotes:

  • who have unwittingly come into possession of the relevant banknotes in that state;
  • whose banknotes are incomplete or badly damaged/contaminated as a result of a natural disaster or an accident or other mishap; or
  • who are, or are employed by, the police or another enforcement agency and who in the course of carrying out their functions or duties:
    • have come into possession of incomplete or badly damaged/contaminated banknotes; or
    • have damaged or contaminated banknotes,

and who meet the Reserve Bank's requirements set out in, or imposed under, these Claim Requirements.

It is an offence under the Crimes (Currency) Act 1981 to intentionally deface, disfigure, mutilate or destroy Australian banknotes without the consent of the Treasurer or certain staff of the Reserve Bank or The Treasury authorised by the Treasurer to give consent. It is also an offence to sell or offer to sell banknotes knowing them to have been defaced, disfigured or mutilated or to possess such banknotes for sale.

Notwithstanding anything else in the Damaged Banknotes Policy or these Claim Requirements, claims of the following type are not eligible to be processed under the Damaged Banknotes Facility and will not be processed:

  • incomplete or badly damaged/contaminated banknotes that have been bought or sold while in that state, even if such banknotes or parts of banknotes are claimed to have been found before being traded; and
  • incomplete or badly damaged/contaminated banknotes claimed to have been sourced in that state directly or indirectly from landfill, recycling plants or similar locations or facilities outside Australia (Offshore Waste Banknotes).

This is because these claims would not meet the requirement that the claimant must have unwittingly come into possession of the relevant banknotes and/or there is a risk that the Crimes (Currency) Act 1981 has been breached and, in the case of Offshore Waste Banknotes, because the Reserve Bank's ability to verify the source of those banknotes and take steps to minimise the risk that the Damaged Banknotes Facility could be used for criminal purposes is limited.

Claim Process

Initial claim

Claims submitted to the Reserve Bank under the Damaged Banknotes Facility must include:

  • the relevant banknotes (contaminated banknotes must be placed in a sealed or closed bag, with the details of the contaminant written on the outside of the bag);
  • one of the Reserve Bank's approved claim forms fully and accurately completed and signed by the claimant; and
  • if the claim is for an amount of $1,000 or more, an Identification Reference Form (unless the claimant has previously completed one in connection with another claim and the details on that previous form have not changed) and the required identification documents.

Additional information

Where the Reserve Bank has any doubt as to the identity of a claimant, how the banknotes were damaged or contaminated or how the incomplete or badly damaged/contaminated banknotes came into possession of a claimant, the Reserve Bank may ask for information in addition to that provided in the claim form before proceeding with the processing of a claim. This could include additional information on the claimant, the source of damage to or contamination of the banknotes or the source of the banknotes. If the claimant is a business, or a representative of a business, the Reserve Bank may also seek information about the business, the beneficial owners of the business and its business activities.

Information obtained from a claimant may be verified against third party sources.

Additional requirements – claims in relation to found banknotes

If a claimant states (or any information obtained by the Reserve Bank in the course of processing a claim indicates) that the banknotes the subject of a claim were unwittingly found or discovered by the claimant and were incomplete or badly damaged/contaminated when found or discovered (a Found Claim) then additional requirements may apply. These may include:

  • where the banknotes were found or discovered by the claimant in the course of their employment or engagement as a contractor, confirmation from the relevant employer or contracting party that the employer or contracting party does not claim an interest in the relevant banknotes; and
  • in any case, evidence that reasonable steps have been taken by the claimant to attempt to identify and contact other persons who might reasonably claim to own the banknotes, which steps may need to include (without limitation):
    • reporting the discovery to the police and waiting a period to see whether anyone claims an interest in the banknotes; and/or
    • where the banknotes were found or discovered by the claimant on, or in a building or other structure on, real property purchased or leased by the claimant, evidence that the claimant has taken reasonable steps to attempt to identify and contact former owners and occupants of that real property.

Reasons for rejection of claim

The Reserve Bank may reject a claim if one or more of the following applies:

  • the claim is of a type that is not eligible to be processed under the Damaged Banknotes Facility (see the section headed ‘Claims Service – Eligibility’ above);
  • the cause of the damage or contamination or the source of the incomplete or badly damaged/contaminated banknotes is not explained by the claimant to the reasonable satisfaction of the Reserve Bank;
  • the absence of a security feature on one or more banknotes is not explained by the claimant to the reasonable satisfaction of the Reserve Bank;
  • the claimant has provided incomplete, inaccurate or misleading information on the claim form, an Identification Reference form or in response to any other request for information;
  • the damage to or contamination of the relevant banknotes is considered by the Reserve Bank to be wilful or deliberate;
  • if the claim is a Found Claim, the Reserve Bank is not satisfied that reasonable steps have been taken by the claimant to identify and contact other persons who might reasonably claim to own the banknotes and/or the Reserve Bank determines that the risk to it of an interest in the relevant banknotes being claimed by a third party is unacceptable;
  • the Reserve Bank otherwise determines that its Claim Requirements have not been met;
  • to process the claim would give rise to an unacceptable risk to the health or safety of Reserve Bank staff;
  • the Reserve Bank determines that no value is payable in relation to the banknotes the subject of the claim.

If the Reserve Bank's Claim Requirements are not met in relation to any of the incomplete or badly damaged/contaminated banknotes the subject of a claim then the Reserve Bank reserves the right to reject the entire claim.

Costs

The Damaged Banknotes Facility is provided free of charge. In exceptional cases, however, the assessment of a claim may be so complex or time-consuming that it may become prohibitively expensive for the Reserve Bank to process it. In such cases, the Reserve Bank reserves the right to ask a claimant for reimbursement of some or all of the costs of assessment prior to proceeding with the processing of the claim.

Claim Outcome

The timeframe within which a claim will be processed will largely depend on the circumstances of the claim and any requirements the Reserve Bank has for additional information (and, if the claim is a Found Claim, for additional steps to be taken to attempt to identify and contact other persons who might reasonably claim to own the banknotes).

The Reserve Bank will normally notify the claimant if it rejects a claim. The exception is if a matter is referred to the police or another enforcement agency, in which case the action taken by the Reserve Bank will be consistent with any action taken by or request made by the police or other enforcement agency. Where the Reserve Bank believes an offence may have been committed in relation to the relevant banknotes or their source, the matter will be referred to the police and/or another enforcement agency.

In situations where the Reserve Bank rejects a claim, no value will be paid to the claimant. Unless the claim has been referred to the police or another enforcement agency, and the relevant banknotes are required by the police or other enforcement agency, all banknotes the subject of a claim are destroyed. Regardless of the outcome of a claim, incomplete or badly damaged/contaminated banknotes will not be returned to the claimant. Title in the incomplete or badly damaged/contaminated banknotes the subject of a claim passes to the Reserve Bank when those banknotes are delivered to the Reserve Bank.

If a claimant wishes to obtain information about the status of their claim, that request should be made to the financial institution with which they lodged the claim or, if the claimant sent a claim directly to the National Banknote Site, by email to damagedbanknotes@rba.gov.au.