Estimates suggest that Brits have over £850million sitting untouched in dormant bank accounts.
With announcements of en-mass job losses, rejected credit applications and increasing repossessions coming almost daily, news that Britons have almost £850million sitting unclaimed in ‘lost' bank accounts comes as quite a surprise.
The so-called dormant funds are currently lying untouched in the banks and building societies where they have remained for the past 15 years or more (the length of time an account must remain untouched before it is classed as ‘lost’). However, as of this summer the unwanted money will be drawn into a central fund and distributed to ‘good causes’ in a scheme organized by the Government.
While the money would still be accessible to those wishing to reclaim it, it’s believed that once the scheme begins, the process for recovering lost funds will become significantly more complex and long winded than it is at present.
Significant attempts have been made by both financial institutions and regulatory bodies in the banking sector to reunite the £850million of funds held in dormant accounts with their rightful owners. However, despite the many publicity campaigns used to try and raise awareness of this issue, surprisingly little has been claimed.
Banks Halifax and Lloyds TSB have managed to reunited £23million worth of ‘lost’ money with its rightful owners to date. However, they estimate that they still have £93million worth of dormant funds outstanding. Furthermore, HSBC has returned just £5.5million of lost funds to it's customers.
Accounts can become dormant for any number of reasons, however, most frequently this can be attributed to a death, loss of account details or change of address.
Individuals who believe they may have money sitting in a dormant account are being urged to investigate as soon as possible. The best way to do this is to either contact your bank or building society directly or, alternatively, visit mylostaccount.org.uk, a search facility run conjointly by the British Banking Association, Building Society Association and N,S&I.
