Financial services industry launches Death Notification Service

A new service enabling people to report the death of an individual to several major financial services providers at the same time launches today.

The free, online Death Notification Service is available to anyone who wishes to notify, in a single step, one or more of the member organisations1 that a customer has died.

The gateway service aims to make the process easier for those who have suffered a bereavement by relieving the stress around repeated notifications and enabling them to manage these at a time that is convenient.

Once the online form is completed, the selected financial institutions will then contact the notifier to inform them of the next steps.

Stephen Jones, Chief Executive of UK Finance, said:

Following the death of a friend or family member, it can be hard to repeat the same conversation with several organisations. The launch of this new service is an important milestone in the industry's commitment to do all it can to provide greater help and support to people during difficult circumstances.

The development of a simple and secure way for consumers to notify all relevant financial services firms of a customer's death was a recommendation of the Financial Services Vulnerability Taskforce. The Death Notification Service is being launched by six UK Finance member organisations, including their related brands1.

When a notification is received, the relevant organisations will update their records and advise the person who contacted them of the next steps. Notifiers can expect to receive communication from firms subscribing to the services within 10 calendar days. The service can be used by anyone, including carers, neighbours, professionals, as well as family members.

Over the next few months, UK Finance and member organisations will work together to evaluate, enhance and evolve the service to ensure it best meets user needs.

Area of expertise:

Personal banking

Notes to editor

1. The six UK Finance member organisations launching the Death Notification Services are: Barclays PLC, HSBC UK, Lloyds Banking Group, Nationwide Building Society, RBS Group and Santander UK. The related banks and building societies participating are:
<table border="1" cellpadding="1" cellspacing="1" style="width:100%;"><tbody><tr><td>Barclays PLC</td>
<td>Barclaycard</td>
</tr><tr><td> </td>
<td>Barclays</td>
</tr><tr><td>HSBC UK</td>
<td>First Direct</td>
</tr><tr><td> </td>
<td>HSBC UK</td>
</tr><tr><td> </td>
<td>M&S Bank</td>
</tr><tr><td>Lloyds Banking Group</td>
<td>Bank of Scotland</td>
</tr><tr><td> </td>
<td>Clerical Medical</td>
</tr><tr><td> </td>
<td>Halifax</td>
</tr><tr><td> </td>
<td>Lloyds Bank</td>
</tr><tr><td> </td>
<td>Scottish Widows</td>
</tr><tr><td>Nationwide Building Society</td>
<td>Nationwide Building Society</td>
</tr><tr><td> </td>
<td>TMW (The Mortgage Works)</td>
</tr><tr><td> </td>
<td>UCB Home Loans Ltd</td>
</tr><tr><td>RBS Group</td>
<td>NatWest</td>
</tr><tr><td>Santander UK</td>
<td>Cahoot</td>
</tr><tr><td> </td>
<td>Santander UK</td>
</tr></tbody></table>2. Individuals using the Death Notification Service will be asked to select the specific brands or institutions which need to be notified. In many cases, a notification to a brand belonging to one financial group will trigger a one-stop notification across products and within UK customer brands within the group.
3. The Death Notification Service is a separate, independent service and is not linked to, or a replacement for, ?Tell Us Once? which is a service that lets people report a death to government organisations.
4. The Death Notification Service is hosted by <a href="https://equiniti.com/uk/">Equiniti</a> who will share details of notification with the six participating UK Finance member organisations.
5. In 2016 a number of UK Finance members agreed to implement the <a href="https://www.bba.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/BBA01-458427-v1-Berea… Principles</a> to improve the experience and outcomes for those in bereaved circumstances. Among this was a commitment to explore the feasibility of a Death Notification Service which would enable an individual to notify a number of financial services organisations about the death of a customer in one go.
6. There are approximately 500,000 deaths registered in the UK each year (based on ONS data). People rarely have a relationship only with one bank or building society. Members of the Service cover around 85 per cent of the current account market; combined, they would all receive about 900,000 notifications annually. UK Finance is in liaison with those banks and building societies who have not currently joined the service and will be actively encouraging them to join, providing regular updates for them on how the service has been received.
7. The Death Notification Service is a technology-driven solution, providing a secure internet-based portal to the general public to notify several financial institutions of a bereavement at the same time. The portal collates the requested (and necessary) information, prior to identification checks and cross reference matching against the Government Records Office database taking place to protect against fraudulent notifications. Following these checks, the data is securely distributed to each respective financial institution alerted of the bereavement where their usual bereavement processes are initiated.
8. UK Finance is a trade association which was formed on 1 July 2017 to represent the finance and banking industry operating in the UK. It represents around 300 firms in the UK providing credit, banking, markets and payment-related services. The new organisation brings together most of the activities previously carried out by the Asset Based Finance Association, the British Bankers? Association, the Council of Mortgage Lenders, Financial Fraud Action UK, Payments UK and The UK Cards Association.