This content is for information and inspiration purposes only. It should not be taken as financial or investment advice. To receive personalised, regulated financial advice please consult us here at Elmfield Financial Planning in Padiham, Burnley, Lancashire.
With 93% of adults in Great Britain reporting a rise in their living costs in 2022, it is a good time to explore ideas to boost your finances. Is it possible, for instance, that you are one of the 22m people with “unclaimed money” sitting in dormant accounts or “lost” pensions? In this article, our Burnley financial planners offer some ideas to help track down inactive (or forgotten) accounts and put yourself in a stronger financial position. We hope this content is useful and please get in touch if you want to discuss your financial plan with us over a free, no-commitment consultation.
Why tracking down is worthwhile
According to one study, those who take time to trace lost money could receive between £500 and £1,000. This might be from an old pension (e.g. from a long-forgotten employer) where the scheme provider could not track you down. This can happen for many reasons. A common one is when you change address or move to a new employer.
Younger people are particularly at risk of making this mistake, since pensions may not be at the front of workers’ minds when starting out in their careers. Today, the average UK worker changes jobs about once every five years – so an individual could have had 12 or more jobs by the time they look to retire. This creates plenty of opportunities for workplace pensions to be started and then forgotten about.
Other important life events can also lead to neglected assets. Getting married, divorce or death in the family can be major catalysts. An estimated £4.5bn is “lost” in UK bank accounts for these sorts of reasons. Sometimes, a change in UK tax rules can compound the problem. In particular, the Child Trust Fund scheme closed in 2011 (making way for the Junior ISA) and many people forgot to deal with their account(s) appropriately – leaving children’s savings dormant.
Finding lost accounts and policies
If you think that you have a lost savings account, then contacting your bank or building society would be a natural first step. However, if you are unsure of your old bank, then My Lost Account (a free service that brings together three of the UK’s tracing providers) may be a useful resource. Bear in mind, however, that your inquiry might take three months to process.
For those looking to track down lost Premium Bonds (or other savings with the National Savings & Investments, or NS&I) then you can contact them directly to use their own tracing service. It will help your inquiry if you have your account number(s), which you can use to fill out their form and try to claim any unclaimed prize(s). If you are looking to find a lost Child Trust Fund, then you can contact the trust provider directly or use the HMRC’s service if you do not know who your account was with.
Regarding insurance, the ABI (Association of British Insurers) conservatively estimates that over £2bn in unclaimed/forgotten policies are languishing in the UK, unused. Perhaps someone you know has died but you are unsure if they had any life insurance in place. Here, you can look for paperwork for insurers (e.g. premium payments to a company) to see if such a policy existed. A solicitor or accountant who previously worked with your relative or loved one may also be able to provide further information.
Lost pensions & investments
As you get older, it can be easy to forget about investments you made (e.g. shares). Today, the prevalence of online investment platforms makes this even more likely as people open accounts and misplace their login information (or cease activity, forgetting the account exists). If you know the company’s details, consider contacting them for a new share certificate. Another option is to use a share registrar (there are three main ones in the UK) to see if you are eligible to claim any of the UK’s £3bn in “lost” shares and dividends. These services may charge you a fee.
Lost pensions can be found by listing all companies you previously worked for and contacting them for details of their workplace pensions. You can then reach out to the schemes directly to track down old pensions. However, if your old employer(s) no longer exist, then you can use the government’s Pension Tracing Service. Whilst this cannot tell you the value of your pension(s), it may help you find the contact details of old schemes. It may help to consult a financial planner to assist with this whole process, as they will know where to look and can advise on whether it is worthwhile to consolidate your various pension “pots” (bringing them together into a single pot). This could reduce your fees, improve investment performance and make everything easier to manage and keep track of.
Invitation
If you are interested in starting a conversation about your own financial plan or investments, then we’d love to hear from you. Please contact us to arrange a free, no-commitment consultation with a member of our team here at Elmfield Financial Planning in Padiham, Burnley, Lancashire.
Reach us via:
T: 01282 772938
E: info@elmfieldfp.co.uk
