New - Death Notification Service

You may have heard recently about a new service intended to make life easier for bereaved families dealing with the deceased’s personal bank and building society accounts.
Some years ago, the Government set up the Tell Us Once Service which meant that once a form was completed and returned, or a phone call made to the service answering questions, all relevant Government Departments would be informed of the death. Before this service was introduced, it was necessary to contact DWP, DVLA, HMRC Income Tax etc individually.
The new Death Notification Service works in a similar way, but please note it is a separate service so you need to contact Tell Us Once for Government Departments and Death Notification Service for financial institutions.
Also, not all financial institutions are part of the service at the moment, although it may expand. The following financial institutions are currently members of the service:
Bank of Scotland
Barclaycard
Barclays
Cahoot
Clerical Medical
First Direct
Halifax
HSBC
Lloyds Bank
M&S Bank
Nationwide Building Society
NatWest
Santander
Scottish Widows
The Mortgage Works
UCB Home Loans Ltd
If someone else has already contacted the service, you won’t be able to get information but will be passed to a Contact Centre for further advice.
Also, if the case is particularly complicated or time sensitive, you should discuss the matter with the deceased’s bank BEFORE contacting the service as it may take longer.
You can get further information from www.deathnotificationservice.co.uk or by phoning
0333 207 6574.
Please also remember Garden House Solicitors if you require advice or assistance on probate or any related subjects. Contact Hazel Jones, Solicitor, TEP SFE on 01992 422128 or hazel@ghsolicitors.co.uk