Support for Bereavement

Once we have been notified of a death all account services including debit cards, direct debits, standing orders, internet banking access & chequebooks are stopped.

All sole accounts will remain open until the appropriate legal documents have been provided along with closure instructions from the Executors or Personal Representatives.

Once we have seen an original or certified copy of the death certificate, the account will transfer into the name of the joint account holder(s).

The account will continue to operate and you will not need to do anything further.

Any debit cards issued in the name of the deceased will be stopped automatically once we have been notified of the death and you may also receive new account stationery, for example a chequebook.

After the death has been registered, what happens depends on whether the mortgage is in sole or joint names.

Sole Borrower – Once the death has been registered, we will need to see an original or certified copy of the Grant of Probate (Certificate of Confirmation in Scotland). Once it is established who will inherit the mortgaged property, we can discuss any future mortgage requirements.

Joint Borrower – The property ownership and mortgage will depend on if the property is held is held as Joint Tenants or Tenants in Common. You will need to seek legal advice to deal with the property ownership element and we may require the Grant of Probate/Letters of Administration/Certificate of Confirmation. We will confirm this once the death has been registered with us.

Certain payments can be made from the customer’s account as part of dealing with the estate. Payments such as funeral expenses, inheritance tax and probate fees. We will issue a cheque made payable to the appropriate third party. Please contact us and we’ll help you make these payments and we’ll let you know what we need to allow this.

Any account(s) which were held in trust do not form part of their estate.

We will, however, require the Executor or Personal Representative to confirm what should happen to the account.

As a guide, documentation to close an account depending on how much money is held in the sole name of the person who has died.

Any Powers of Attorney that were granted by the deceased will end upon their death. This means that the named Attorney will not have any rights to carry out transactions on the account following the death.

We support Additional Permitted Subscriptions, which is a one-off ISA allowance equal to the value of the deceased’s ISA Savings. This allows ISA allowances to be passed to an existing customer when their spouse/civil partner has passed away.

Please contact us if you require more information and we’ll help you with this.

There are many terms which you may come across when dealing with a bereavement. To help you understand everything you need to know, we have listed definitions for some of the more common terms:

Administrator

The person appointed to administer an estate where there is no valid Will, or where the executor(s) is unable, or unwilling to act.

Attorney

A person appointed by another to act in his/her place.

Beneficiary

The person who is entitled to receive the funds or property from a Will or intestacy.

Bona vacantia

Latin for ‘ownerless goods’; this is a legal concept associated with assets that have no owner.

Capital Gains Tax (CGT)

CGT is a tax on capital ‘gains’. If when you sell or give away an asset it has increased in value, the profit (‘gain’) may be taxable.

Certifying documentation

Copies of documentation can be certified by a regulated professional person, such as a solicitor, accountant or bank official.

Clearance certificate/certificate of discharge

A certificate now usually issued in letter format by HMRC releasing a person liable to inheritance tax from paying further.

Codicil

This is a written amendment within a Will.

Commissioner for Oaths

This is a solicitor.

Deed of variation

This allows the individuals who receive funds or property from the Will (beneficiaries) to change how the estate is distributed to reflect family circumstances and possibly save future inheritance tax.

Estate

The term that covers everything an individual owns, i.e. money, property and possessions.

Estate accounts

Accounts recording the financial transactions during the administration period.

Executor

This is the person, named in a Will, who is to carry out the wishes contained in that Will.

Inheritance tax

The tax that must be paid from the estate of a deceased person.

Intestacy

This term is used when a person dies without having made a valid Will.

Joint Tenancy

This means that each person’s interest in the property is not quantified; both own the property jointly and individually. If one of the person’s were to die then the whole property automatically passes to the other person regardless of anything that is said in a Will.

Lasting or enduring power of attorney

Enable you to set out your wishes in a legal document and to appoint trusted people as ‘attorneys’ to oversee them. Lasting power of attorney replaced the enduring power of attorney from 1 October 2007.

Letters of administration with Will annexed

If the deceased left a Will but did not appoint an executor or if the named executor is unable to carry out the duty then the grant of probate is called ‘letters of administration with Will annexed’.

Personal representative

The person responsible for dealing with the estate of a person who has died, i.e. either the executor or the administrator.

Power of attorney

Formal deed by which one person appoints another to act/represent on his/her behalf.

Tenancy in common

This means that a person’s interest in the property is fixed and separate. If one of the person’s were to die, their share in the property could be passed onto someone else entitled to it under their Will.

Trustee

The person who is holding assets on trust.