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Insurance

Brits owed more than £15bn by financial firms

Kit Klarenberg
Written By:
Kit Klarenberg
Posted:
Updated:
21/10/2015

UK consumers could be owed over £15bn by financial institutions as a result of forgotten pensions, lost life insurance policies and dormant bank accounts, according to research.

Figures from life insurer Beagle Street show there is an estimated £5bn in dormant bank accounts, £3bn in unclaimed pensions and £1bn in lost life insurance policies.

There is a further £3bn sitting in both National Savings and Investment (NS&I) accounts and unfulfilled shares and dividends.  There are over 1.1 million unclaimed Premium Bonds worth around £50m, with the largest unclaimed prize estimated at £25,000.

If money left sitting in bank accounts is not claimed within 15 years of lying idle, it will be collected by the government, with its first claim on dormant funds estimated to be between £60m and £100m.

“There is simply too much money sitting unclaimed and far too many people missing out on money that is rightfully theirs,” said Matthew Gledhill, managing director of Beagle Street.

“For people who have experienced bereavement in the family, a life insurance policy could be a lifeline but there are clearly people who do not know they have been financially protected or have forgotten their policy even exists.

“We hope our customers never need to use their cover but by turning our policies into art that can be hung on the wall we’re making it really easy for policyholders and their loved ones to find their details if the worst happens.”

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