Brits urged to check bank accounts with over 30,000 families owed £367 million by UK government

When it comes to taxes, pensions, savings, bonds and all the rest of it, sorting out your finances can be a bit of a nightmare.

But it can be a whole different kind of kettle of fish for bereaved families having to deal with accounts while grieving the loss of their loved ones.

And so, Brits are being urged to check their bank accounts as families are set to be owed millions.

Earlier this year, the HM Treasury backed savings banks company, National Savings and Investments (NS&I) announced that in some cases where a person’s estate had made a bereavement claim, ‘they didn’t receive the full amount owed to them’.

Letters started to be sent out to those affected from last Wednesday (27 May) as its reported there are around 34,000 bereaved families being contacted with £367 million due to be returned.

Old pensions or savings accounts may go forgotten. (Getty Stock Image)

The NS&I will be directly contacting the legal representatives of those estates affected with holdings of £10 or more.

But this all shines a light on a bit of a broader problem in that people’s money can easily go missing when they pass away.

There might be Premium Bonds or forgotten savings accounts or maybe just old pensions from old jobs.

Helen Morrissey, head of retirement analysis at Hargreaves Lansdown, told the Independent: “People can accumulate multiple bank accounts and pensions over the course of their lives and, when they die, it can be up to close family to try and track them down.

“This can be especially difficult if there is no will, or your loved one did not have their affairs in order.”

Brits should therefore check through the paperwork of a loved one, to see if they can find any statements relating to accounts that may have been forgotten about.

Having a will in place can be extremely helpful. (Getty Stock Image)

And if you believe the person who died held a savings or Premium Bonds, they should make a bereavement claim directly through NS&I.

It’s also recommended to use free tracing services to search for any missing accounts.

Morrissey suggests: “The Death Notification Service is a service that you can input your loved one’s details and if they have an account with one of the providers using the service then they will get in contact with you.

“Gretel is another free service that will do a search on accounts under your loved one’s name and send you details.”

Look, while none of us want to think about our deaths really, all of this can be helped with a bit of planning.

Having a will in place can give your loved ones some peace of mind that they’re doing the right thing. Plus, letting them know where you keep important documents and what kind of accounts you have will massively help them.