Bereavement support What to do when someone dies Building Society
A step-by-step guide We understand that the death of someone close can be a difficult time. This step-by-step guide gives practical information on how to notify and confirm a death, what happens to accounts when someone dies, how to get help with funeral costs and what you ll need to close accounts. To help you plan and keep on track throughout the process, we ve also included a useful checklist. Registering the death page 2 Letting us know page 2 What to do next page 3 The will and the estate page 4 Understanding tax and benefits page 4 Closing an account and releasing the funds page 5 What happens to the account page 6 Checklist page 9 Glossary page 11 Useful websites page 12 Contact us page 13 Registering the death Within the first few days you ll need to register the death. The government s website - www.gov.uk/register-a-death - tells you who can register the death and what they ll need to do. Once you ve registered the death, you ll be given: a death certificate, and a certificate for burial or cremation. It s a good idea to ask for extra copies of the death certificate, as many organisations will need to see an original version (there can be a small fee for this). Letting us know We appreciate this will be a difficult time for you. However, it is important we know about the death of a Nationwide customer as soon as possible. If you don t yet have the death certificate and want to safeguard the account and stop marketing, you can notify us by making an appointment in your local branch, by phone on 0800 464 3018, online at nationwide.co.uk/bereavement or by writing to us at: Bereavement Services Specialist Customer Support Nationwide Building Society Swindon Wiltshire SN38 3FN What we ll need from you Full name, date of birth, date of death and Nationwide account details of the person who has died to allow us to identify their accounts. The name and address of the personal representative if you know them. This lets us know who we re writing to and who is entitled to the information. What we ll do once we ve received the notification We ll update the information of the person who has died to safeguard their sole accounts. We ll also make sure no marketing communications are sent to them. Please be aware that for a short time some marketing may be received. We ll make every effort to avoid this happening but if you should receive any please accept our apologies. We ll also make sure all of our employees and other companies we work with are informed. It is important to note that should you visit or contact us within four days of submission that our records may not have been fully updated. 1 2
What to do next Once you have the original death certificate please take this into a branch or send it to us at the address on the previous page. If you re the personal representative, and you re not a Nationwide customer, you ll need to provide us with a form of ID such as a valid full UK passport or valid full photocard driving licence. For more information on which documents you can use to prove your identity, please see nationwide.co.uk/ bereavement We ll write to the personal representative within 7-10 days with details of the account closure process. Paying for the funeral Funeral costs can vary depending on the services you need to pay for, and in some cases you might need to pay for these up front. If there isn t a financial scheme like a pre-paid funeral plan or insurance policy, you can request money from the savings or bank account of the person who has died as long as there are enough funds in it. We will need to have seen the death certificate before you can request funds to help pay for a funeral or cremation. To request the funds, you ll need to visit your nearest branch with the original funeral invoice. Alternatively, you can send the invoice along with a covering letter, which needs to include your name and address and the name and address of the person who has died, to: Bereavement Services Specialist Customer Support Swindon Wiltshire SN38 3FN The will and the estate The will If there is a will, we won t need to see it to close or release funds from an account. Find out more information about wills, probate and inheritance tax at www.gov.uk/wills-probate-inheritance Dealing with the estate After a person dies, their estate is shared out according to their will or given to their next of kin if no will was left. A person s estate includes everything they own or that is registered in their name, things like: money (cash, bank or building society accounts, money owed by others) property personal possessions (such as jewellery or a car) insurance policies stocks and shares Personal representative It s the responsibility of the personal representative (sometimes referred to as the executor or administrator) to carry out the administration of the estate. This can include: collecting all the assets of the estate dealing with any paperwork, and settling any debts, taxes, funeral and administration costs. Appointing someone to administer the estate You can appoint a solicitor, chartered accountant, specialist probate service or bank to handle the administration. There will be a charge for employing these services, so it s worth understanding what s needed before you go ahead. Dealing with the estate yourself Depending on the overall value of the estate, you may need to apply for a Grant of Representation. For smaller or lower value estates, you may not need a Grant of Representation. Understanding tax and benefits When someone dies, it s important to sort out their tax, benefits and National Insurance as soon as possible. There may be tax to pay, or their estate might be owed some tax back. Inheritance Tax If you ve been named as the personal representative, you will be responsible for paying any inheritance tax using funds from the person s estate. Find out more about inheritance tax and the IHT423 form at www.gov.uk/inheritance-tax 3 4
Closing a Nationwide account and releasing the funds Once you have provided all the relevant documents to close the account please fill in a Request to Close Account(s) form, which you can get at nationwide.co.uk/ bereavement or in branch and return it to us. How soon we can release the funds, and what we ll need from you, depends on the total amount held with us: Less than 5,000 We ll need a completed Request to Close Account(s) form. If you re applying for a Grant of Representation the original or certified copy of this document will need to be provided to us as well. Once this has been received, we ll release the funds as soon as possible. 5,000-30,000 We ll need a completed Request to Close Account(s) form. If you re applying for a Grant of Representation the original or certified copy of this document will need to be provided to us as well. If you re not applying for a Grant of Representation, our Request to Close Account(s) form will need to be witnessed by a solicitor. 30,000+ In addition to a completed Request to Close Account(s) form, we ll need to see the Grant of Representation. Releasing funds We ll release any funds as soon as we can. If you need funds immediately to help cover the funeral, we require a copy of the funeral invoice. If you need funds to help cover Grant of Representation fees, fill in a Funds to Cover Fees form which you can get at nationwide.co.uk/bereavement or in branch, and return it to us. To release funds for inheritance tax prior to closure, please provide us with the IHT423 form. Please note we do not participate in the direct payment scheme for inheritance tax, therefore a cheque will be issued and sent to you directly. Fraud awareness We re committed to helping our members protect themselves against fraud. For more information on fraud awareness you can contact us on 0800 30 20 11 or visit nationwide.co.uk/support/security-centre/fraud-awareness/card-fraud What happens to the account Current account Jointly held If you held a joint account with the person who has died, we will change the account into your name. The account will then be your responsibility. The card and chequebook of the person who has died will be cancelled automatically and you don t need to return them to us. What happens with overdrawn accounts? If you held a joint overdraft, then as above, we ll change the account into your name. The account will then be your responsibility. Current account Solely held Sole current accounts will remain open until we receive the closure documents. Their card and chequebook will be cancelled automatically, so you don t need to return them to us. Any recurring payments, such as Direct Debits and standing orders, will be frozen until the account is closed. (The Personal Representative should also cancel Direct Debits with the company being paid.) What happens with overdrawn sole accounts? If the account is overdrawn, the overdraft will have to be repaid using assets in the estate. Savings - ISA ISAs will retain their tax free status until they are closed: For members with a date of death on or before 5 April 2018, ISA accounts will be closed on registration of the death and the value in the account will be moved to a taxable savings account pending a request for release from the personal representatives of the deceased. If the date of death is on or after 6 April 2018, the ISA account will remain open and its tax free status continues until such time as it is closed e.g. once administration of the estate is complete. If the account is not closed within 3 years of the date of death of the member, the value in the account will be moved to a taxable savings account pending a request for release from the personal representatives of the deceased. If you re the spouse or civil partner of the person who has died, you can inherit an additional ISA allowance. For more information visit nationwide.co.uk/isa-inheritance 5 6
Savings Bonds Jointly held If you held a joint account with the person who has died, we will change the account into your name. The account will then be your responsibility. Savings Bonds Solely held Bond accounts can be left until they mature or closed immediately without incurring any early closure charges. We don t need you to return any passbooks or bond certificates. e-bonds Because e-bonds are linked to a Nationwide current account, these will need to be closed along with that current account. Any e-bond accounts will be closed once we ve received the closure documents. Insurance Home insurance Jointly held If you held a joint policy with the person who has died, you can either: cancel the policy and set it up in your own name, or let the policy continue to its renewal date. Insurance Home insurance Solely held If you re the spouse or civil partner of the person who has died, the policy can be updated in your name and the cover will continue. Otherwise, the policy will continue until its renewal date, after which the Personal Representative will need to arrange new cover. It s important to update your insurer with any changes at the property, for example if it s now unoccupied. Savings Other savings accounts Jointly held If you held a joint account with the person who has died, we will change the account into your name. The account will then be your responsibility. Their card will be cancelled automatically, so you don t need to return it to us. Savings Other savings accounts Solely held Sole savings accounts will remain open until we receive the closure documents. Mortgage Joint and sole Once we ve been notified about the death, we ll freeze the mortgage account for three months and will not take any regular payments during this period (please be aware that interest is still charged during this time). If you d prefer not to freeze the mortgage account for this period, please contact us and we ll change this arrangement. At the end of the three months, we ll re-calculate the payment over the remaining term of the mortgage to take into account any increase in balance. Credit Card If the account has a zero balance The account will be closed and no further action is required. If the account has an outstanding balance If the account has a balance left to pay, this will have to be repaid using assets in the estate. If the account has a credit balance The account will remain open until we receive the closure documents. If there was an additional card holder named on the account All cards linked to the account will be deactivated and the account will be closed, following the steps described above. If you re named as an additional card holder on the account, you ll need to apply for a new credit card in your own name. If the person who has died was an additional account holder named on someone else s Nationwide credit card We ll remove their name from the account. Personal loan Jointly held If you held a joint account with the person who has died, we ll change the account into your name. The account will then be your responsibility. Personal loan Solely held We ll send a settlement figure to the Personal Representative, the solicitor or organisation dealing with the estate once the death has been registered with us. If the loan isn t covered by life insurance or payment insurance, or the cover isn t enough to pay the loan off in full, the loan will have to be repaid using assets in the estate. Debt with Nationwide Building Society If the person who has died had debt they owed to Nationwide, such as a credit card, a loan or an overdraft in their sole name, that debt will need to be repaid. Our Bereavement Services team will deal with the Personal Representative regarding the debt. If you ve got any questions about the debt with Nationwide you can call the bereavement helpdesk on 0800 464 30 18. 7 8
Checklist We ve compiled a suggested checklist of people and organisations you may need to contact after someone dies. This information is just a guide and not all of the details will apply in every case. It s useful to have the following information available about the person who has died, which may help you when you re filling in forms or writing letters: National insurance number NHS number Date and place of birth Date of marriage or civil partnership (if applicable) Personal representative Tax reference number (if applicable) Passport and driving license number (if applicable) Government organisations Tell Us Once service The Government operate a Tell Us Once service that lets you report a death to most government organisations in one go. Your local registrar will give you a unique reference number to access the Tell Us Once service online or by phone when the death is registered (Not available in Northern Ireland or if the death occurred abroad). If the Tell Us Once service is used, the government departments below will be informed. If you don t want to use the service or it s not available to you, these are the government departments you may need to notify about the death. Legal Obtain a medical certificate from the hospital/doctor Register the death, find out more on gov.uk/register-a-death Obtain copies of the certified death certificate If there is a will, check if there are any specific requests (e.g. preference for burial, cremation, type of funeral etc.) Contact funeral director Notify solicitors/accountant Notify the executors named in the will or appoint an administrator HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) to deal with tax and cancel benefits Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) to cancel any benefits e.g. Income Support HM Passport Office (HMPO) to cancel a passport Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) to cancel a driving licence (you will need to send the registration certificate V5C) The local council, to cancel housing benefit, council tax benefit, a Blue Badge, inform council housing services and remove the person from the electoral register Housing Mortgage/landlord or local authority if they rented a property Royal mail to arrange a re-direction service Utility companies such as phone, water, gas, electric etc. Any private organisation/agency providing home help TV/internet companies Financial Bank/building society accounts/national savings Direct Debits/standing orders Credit cards/store cards Subscriptions to clubs/groups/magazines Insurance policies such as house, car, travel, medical etc. If the person who has died was named first on an insurance policy, make contact as early as possible to ensure you re still insured Pensions providers/life insurance companies Mobile phone contracts Companies with which the person who has died may have had rental/hire purchase/loan agreements Other organisations and people to contact Seasonal membership for clubs, trade unions or associations for cancellation and refunds Doctor/hospital and cancel any appointments Dentist and optician Church/regular place of worship Complete 9 10
Glossary Administrator Also known as Executor Dative in Scotland, this is the person who obtains Letters of Administration to deal with an estate when there is no will (and therefore no Grant of Representation). Estate A person s estate includes everything they own or that is registered in their name. Executor The person or persons named in a will to deal with the estate following a person s death and, if necessary, request a Grant of Probate (or Certificate of Confirmation in Scotland). Grant of Representation Where a will was left, this will be a Grant of Probate and where no will was left this will be Letters of Administration. In Scotland, the Grant of Representation is called a Confirmation. These are the official documents that allow executors or administrators to close accounts, gather the assets of an estate and pay them out to the beneficiaries. Personal Representative This is the general term for an executor or administrator. Useful websites Help and bereavement support Cruse Bereavement Care www.cruse.org.uk Help with understanding and coping with grief following the death of someone close. The Samaritans www.samaritans.org A completely confidential service offering support for any type of emotional distress. Child Bereavement UK www.childbereavementuk.org Information, training and specialised support for when a child dies or a child is bereaved. Age UK www.ageuk.org.uk Free help and advice from the UK s largest charity dedicated to helping people make the most of later life. Funeral services National Association of Funeral Directors www.nafd.org.uk Help with finding a registered funeral director in your area. The British Humanist Association www.humanism.org.uk/ceremonies Help with arranging non-religious funerals and ceremonies. The Natural Death Centre www.naturaldeath.org.uk A charity offering support and guidance when planning a funeral. Financial and legal advice The Probate Service www.theprobateservice.org Guidance for dealing with probate and inheritance tax. Citizens Advice Bureau www.citizensadvice.org.uk Free legal advice and support. 11 12
Notes Contact us In branch Speak with a member of our team by booking an appointment at your local branch. By post You can write to us at: Bereavement Services Specialist Customer Support Nationwide Building Society Swindon Wiltshire SN38 3FN By phone Call our bereavement team on: 0800 464 30 18. Lines are open: Mon to Fri 9am to 5pm, Sat 9am to 12pm. Specialist Support Services Our team have received specialist training to provide a confidential service for customers affected by illness or an unexpected change in their personal circumstances. Find out more at nationwide.co.uk/specialistsupport 13 14
Just ask in branch Call 0800 464 30 18 Visit nationwide.co.uk/bereavement When you have finished with this leaflet please recycle it. Nationwide cares about the environment this literature is printed in the UK with biodegradable vegetable inks on paper from well managed sources. We are able to provide this document in Braille, large print or audio format upon request. Your local branch will arrange this for you or you can contact us on 0800 30 20 11. If you have hearing or speech difficulties and are a textphone user, you can call us direct in text on 0800 37 80 01. We also accept calls via BT TypeTalk. Just dial 18001 followed by the full telephone number you wish to ring. Calls may be recorded. Nationwide Building Society. Head Office: Nationwide House, Pipers Way, Swindon, Wiltshire SN38 1NW. P3162 (April 2018)