Bill Ban: Colorado Box Stores Launch New Cash Rule

Colorado retailers are updating their cash payment policies for 2025. Those retailers include Walmart, Target, Dollar Tree, and Costco. Some of the state's largest big box stores claim the change helps protect them against fraud.

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If you often pay cash, and with large bills, this payment policy change may impact your shopping habits most. The rest of us might learn something about replacing our mangled cash.

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Damaged Bill Ban at Big Box Stores

Walmart, Target, Dollar Tree, and Costco are all part of a growing list of retailers who will no longer accept damaged or mangled bills as payment. Regardless if the bill is $1, $2, $5, $10, $20, $50, $100, $500, $1,000, or $10,000, if it has damaged edges, tears, burns, rips, or discoloration, stores will refuse to take the bill as payment.

How Bad Is That Bill?

The Federal Reserve says a damaged bill is one with cuts, damaged edges, or discoloration. Did you know you can file a currency claim with the Bureau of Engraving and Printing and have your damaged $100 bill replaced? They get over 20,000 requests for mutilated currency redemption each year, and they end up replacing about $35 million annually.

Unfit bills are notes that are dirty, defaced, limp, torn, or worn. Do not send these off to the Bureau of Engraving and Printing, instead contact a local bank and ask if they can replace them for you.

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Filing a Currency Claim

Anyone in Colorado with mutilated currency can follow the online guide from the Bureau of Engraving and Printing. They list the steps for filling a claim here. The process is free of charge and can take anywhere from six months to 36 months depending on the damage to the currency.