FAQs

Banks, building societies and NS&I will attempt to contact the customer using the information they have available, however if these efforts are not successful, the account will be classified as lost. Account providers do not set out to lose contact with their customers, but where it is clear that a customer no longer lives at the last known address, there would be a substantial risk to continue to send information about the account there.

After 15 years of no contact with a customer, the money in a lost account may be transferred to Reclaim Fund Ltd under a statute-backed scheme which benefits societal causes. However, banks and building societies continue to hold records of the account and the money remains the customers in perpetuity and will be repaid to the account holder, or their legal heirs, in the event of a legitimate claim. The transfer of such monies has no bearing on the rights of the legally entitled account holder to access their funds in the future. Please note, however, banks and building societies only need to keep records of accounts which have been closed where all of the money has been withdrawn or transferred to another account, for six years after closure.

Completing the application form online will mean that your application is processed more quickly and you are able to keep track of the responses from the account provider by logging into your online profile.

We appreciate that not everyone is able to submit an application online and therefore copies of the application form can either be printed from this site or you can contact us to request a copy is sent to you.

There are separate forms for lost accounts with banks, building societies and NS&I. Please ensure you complete the correct form and send it to the correct address. Due to the additional administration involved, paper applications will take longer to process so please complete your application online if possible.

You can download the forms below:

For lost accounts with banks, or with building societies that have become banks, complete this form - Download the UK Finance form in PDF format

For lost accounts with current building societies complete the Building Societies Association form - Download the BSA form in PDF format

For lost NS&I products complete the NS&I form - Download the NS&I form in PDF format

If you have applied online, you will receive an email advising you that there is an update on your search. You will receive an alert each time a bank or building society has completed their search.

If you have submitted a paper application form, declined to set up an online profile or are searching for an NS&I product, you will receive the search result in writing.

If an account has been found the account provider will advise you of the next steps required to claim your lost money.

There are occasions when you might wish to submit multiple applications eg: if you are checking for lost accounts for children, deceased parents or you are a probate solicitor. Once you have created an online profile by providing an email address and password you can submit additional applications from your profile page. Your contact details will be retained for one year from your last application. If you have multiple applications being processed at the same time each will have a unique reference number so that you can identify what response refers to which application.

You will receive a response to your search within three months.

If you disagree with the result of your search, you will have the right to appeal through the account provider's internal complaints process. If your appeal is unsuccessful, you will have the right to refer your complaint to the Financial Ombudsman Service, South Quay Plaza, 183 Marsh Wall, London, E14 9SR, Telephone: 0845 080 1800 www.financial-ombudsman.org.uk

There are over 70 account providers which participate in the My Lost Account service, including all major banks, UK building societies and NS&I (including the old Post Office Savings Bank accounts). You will see the list of account providers in the pull down menu options within the application process. This list includes defunct bank and building society names, together with their successor account provider.

If you are trying to trace a lost account with Abbey National, Alliance & Leicester, Bradford & Bingley, Birmingham Midshires, Bristol & West, Britannia, Cheltenham & Gloucester, Halifax, National & Provincial, Northern Rock or Woolwich please note that these accounts will now be with banks. When completing your application, please select the original account provider that the account was held with from the drop-down menu. There is also a free text notes field to add details should you wish.

Alternatively, to find out what happened to an old building society you can you use the search tool on the BSA website.

If you are not the account holder and they are still alive you will need their express authority, or the appropriate legal authority. No information about found accounts will be given until you have proved to the account provider that you have the appropriate authority and been through their identity checks.

The account provider will ask you to verify your identity in the event of an account being found. If you live overseas and don’t visit the UK, or cannot otherwise visit a branch, the account provider can advise on how best to do this.