Unclaimed Premium Bond winnings worth over £105 million encouraged to be allocated through the Tell Us Once scheme, as advised by NS&I.
National Savings & Investments (NS&I) Considering Joining Tell Us Once Scheme for Simplifying Unclaimed Funds Process
National Savings & Investments (NS&I) is considering joining the Tell Us Once scheme, a free notification service for reporting a death to most government departments in one go, to streamline the process of reuniting unclaimed funds with their rightful owners.
Currently, more than 2.5 million Premium Bond prizes worth around £105 million remain unclaimed, with NS&I having successfully paid out over 99% of all Premium Bonds prizes to its winners since 1957. However, these unclaimed prizes often result from holders who have not registered their details with NS&I or who have moved without informing them, leading to cheques being returned.
To join the Tell Us Once scheme, NS&I would need to align their processes with the requirements of the UK government's service. This would involve a series of steps:
- Assess Legal and Regulatory Requirements: NS&I should review the legal and regulatory requirements for joining the Tell Us Once scheme, understanding the types of data that can be shared and the consent needed from the deceased's estate or executors.
- Contact the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP): NS&I should initiate discussions with the DWP, which oversees the Tell Us Once service, to explore the possibilities of integrating their systems.
- Develop a Data Sharing Agreement: NS&I would need to develop a data sharing agreement with the DWP that outlines how personal data related to deceased individuals can be shared securely and legally.
- Implement Technical Integration: NS&I would need to implement technical changes to their systems to facilitate data exchange with the Tell Us Once service.
- Train Staff and Update Processes: NS&I should train customer service staff on the new processes and ensure that procedures for handling notifications and claims are updated to reflect the integration with Tell Us Once.
- Communicate Changes to Customers and Stakeholders: Announce the changes to customers, stakeholders, and executors through appropriate channels, ensuring transparency about how NS&I will handle notifications of death and claims for unclaimed funds.
By integrating with the Tell Us Once service, NS&I could simplify the process, increase efficiency, and improve the customer experience during difficult times. However, challenges such as data privacy and system integration would need to be addressed with secured data sharing practices and technical support from IT experts.
Sam Richardson, deputy editor of Which? Money, suggests that NS&I could set an example for the wider industry by joining the Tell Us Once service. Currently, NS&I reunited more than £166 million in the financial year 2024-25, through its tracing service and My Lost Account.
It's worth noting that NS&I is not currently part of the Tell Us Once service, as it focuses on updating government departments providing services like benefits, passports, and pensions, rather than banking services and investments. However, local authorities including Kent, Reading, and Norfolk offer the Tell Us Once service on their websites.
If you have unclaimed prizes or savings with NS&I, you can use their tracing service or My Lost Account to check and claim them. Additionally, you can consider checking independent best buy tables to find a better savings rate.
- National Savings & Investments (NS&I) could potentially enhance their unclaimed funds process by adopting the Tell Us Once scheme, allowing them to streamline notifications of deceased holders and simplify the reunification of unclaimed prizes and savings with their rightful owners, similar to the handling of government department services like benefits, passports, and pensions.
- To expand their banking services in line with personal-finance best practices, NS&I could collaborate with the UK government's Tell Us Once service, following a series of steps such as assessing legal requirements, developing a data sharing agreement, and implementing technical integration, ultimately aiming to provide a more efficient and customer-friendly approach to unclaimed fund management, aligning with initiatives suggested by financial experts like Sam Richardson.
