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Unclaimed assets

The Government has been working with the bank and building society sector to design a scheme to allow money in dormant bank and building society accounts to be reinvested in society, while protecting consumers' rights to reclaim their money at any time.

The Government published the Dormant Bank and Building Society Accounts Bill on 7 November 2007.

Following the consultation on the scheme, which ended on 9 August 2007, a dormant bank account was defined as one where there has been no customer-initiated activity for 15 years.

As part of the wider unclaimed assets scheme, the industry and their representative bodies will launch a drive to reunite account holders with their lost accounts. If the account holder cannot be found, the money will be transferred to a central reclaim fund regulated by the Financial Services Authority. This central reclaim fund will hold back money should people later come forward to reclaim their accounts. 

In England the focus of these resources will be on funding youth services that are responsive to the needs of young people, followed by financial capability and inclusion. The devolved administrations of Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland will determine their own priorities for distribution which reflect the needs of communities in each country.

If resources permit, and subject to clarifying and addressing any state aid implications, the Government would also like to see a proportion of unclaimed assets in England used to develop the social investment market and to contribute to the long-term sustainability of the third sector, by strengthening existing finance providers.

Legislation will allow resources to be distributed on a UK-wide basis by the BIG Lottery Fund. This will help ensure a coordinated, transparent and effective allocation of funds, by building on the BIG Lottery Fund's existing nationwide infrastructure and expertise.

Further details of the consultation are available from HM Treasury [external website].