Britons returning from trips abroad will amass more than £900 million worth of unused foreign currency this year, it was revealed yesterday.

Most tourists keep the money stockpiled in their homes, but 17 per cent admit to actually throwing money away when they get back, a survey by debit card company Visa Europe found.

Nearly a quarter of those surveyed said they had at least £50 worth of currency left over at the end of a trip.

Most (64 per cent) bring the money home with them, but only five per cent always exchange it. Of those who do not bring currency home, most use it all up on the last day or spend the remainder in airport shops.

Based on responses from 1,000 UK adults who have holidayed abroad in the last 12 months, the poll showed that 34 per cent admitted buying items they did not really want to use up their loose change at the end of a trip.

Sign up to our free newsletters

Get the best updates straight to your inbox:
Please select at least one mailing list.

You can unsubscribe at any time by clicking the link in the footer of our emails. We use Mailchimp as our marketing platform. By subscribing, you acknowledge that your information will be transferred to Mailchimp for processing.