Thank you thoth! :) The reason I said silver coins is because they are Capital Gains Tax FREE if you buy the coin for your residence, the bars are not. I agree with not wasting money on numismatic coins and to buy your silver as cheap as possible but if you want to avoid paying CGT when it comes to cashing in on your profits then it's wiser to buy the coins! Also the real mining gold to silver ratio is 9 to 1 for every 1 oz of gold the miners mine they find 9 oz of silver. Most important thing is NOT to store your precious metals in the banking system, use a secure independent firm, & do your due diligence! In London, UK I recommend using http://www.metrosafe.co.uk/