Bereavement Support

When someone dies, a doctor involved in their care completes a medical certificate of cause of death (MCCD), which you’ll need to register the death. If the death does not require investigation by the Coroner, then the doctor can issue the medical certificate.

If a post-mortem examination is required to determine the cause of death, this will be carried out and the relevant documents will then be passed to the registrar.

If you can, go to the registry office in the area where the person died. Doing this means you’ll usually get the documents you need quicker.

These will include:

• A certificate for burial or cremation
• A certificate of registration of death
• The Death Certificate, which will be a copy of the entry in the register

Some organisations will ask to see the original Death Certificate, so it's a good idea to get several certified copies. They can then be provided to any organisations that require a copy, otherwise you could be waiting for your copy to be returned. Click here to see about certified copies .

A death needs to be registered within five days in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland, and within eight days in Scotland. The links below have useful information on how you can register the death at your local Registry Office.

Find a register office - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)  – England and Wales
https://www.nidirect.gov.uk/contacts/general-register-office-northern-ireland  – Northern Ireland
Registration | National Records of Scotland (nrscotland.gov.uk)  – Scotland

In some cases, the government can help with funeral costs – you can check Get help with funeral costs (Funeral Expenses Payment) - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)  for eligibility.

Funerals can be expensive, so unless there's a prepaid funeral plan, you should check there’s enough money to pay for it before you make any arrangements.

• If the deceased had accounts with Sainsbury’s Bank, and they hold enough money, we can send a payment to the funeral director to pay for the funeral and all associated expenses. To release money, we need to see original or certified copies of the invoices. If the deceased had accounts with other banks or financial institutions, you could approach them to help with the funeral costs.
• If the deceased was employed, a 'death in service' payment may be available from their employer and payments may also be available from a benevolent fund or pension scheme. The employer's Human Resource department should be able to advise the next of kin or Executor(s) if this is the case.
• If you're the surviving party/spouse and claiming benefits, you may be able to get help with the funeral costs. Check with your Jobcentre Plus office as soon as possible as this will make it easier to plan the funeral.

If there’s a Will, it will name one or more people as personal representatives (also known as ‘Executors’) who will be responsible for carrying out the deceased’s wishes. It’s an important document as it contains the last wishes of the deceased. If you can't find a Will at their home, it's a good idea to ask their solicitor, bank, or financial advisor if they're holding it for safekeeping. If so, you'll need to establish whether the Will they hold is the last known version.

If someone dies without making a Will, it's known as 'dying intestate’. In this case the law on who will inherit the Estate varies depending on where the deceased lived and, in some circumstances, their religion. In England, Wales and Northern Ireland the Laws of Intestacy apply and the person who will inherit the Estate is the next of kin – usually their husband, wife, civil partner, or their child/children. In Scotland, different rules apply – to find out more visit www.gov.scot . The next of kin usually becomes the administrator of any possessions, money, or property they leave behind, often referred to as ‘the Estate’.

If Sainsbury’s Bank has been appointed as an Executor by the person who has died, please let us know as soon as possible, by calling 08085 40 50 60.

By Phone

If you’d like to speak to someone you can call us on:

0345 013 0199 or +44 131 40 50 60 if calling from abroad. Our lines are open – 8am to 8pm Monday to Friday, and 8am to 6pm Saturday and Sunday.

When you call us, please make sure, you have any details for the account holder ready to hand, along with the Death Certificate reference number, or equivalent (e.g. Coroner’s Certificate Reference number, Death Verification form number etc.).

Write to us

You can write to us at:

Savings and Loans 
Sainsbury’s Bank
PO Box 4955
Worthing
BN11 9ZA 

Or 

Sainsbury's Bank Credit Cards
PO Box 5289
Worthing
BN11 9SX

If you write to us, please include the account holder's account details and Death Certificate reference number on any correspondence. We only need to see the Death Certificate if the death happened overseas, please send us the original or a certified copy of one of the following:

• Death Certificate
• Death Certificate verification form
• Extract of the Death Certificate
• If a Death Certificate isn’t available, please send us the Coroners Certificate of the fact of death

You might need to tell other organisations about the person’s death, such as other banks or building societies, utility companies, etc.

The UK Death Notification Service (DNS) (www.deathnotificationservice.co.uk ) is a free service which allows you to tell multiple financial companies with one notification, providing they subscribe to this service.

If you're not sure which banks or building societies the deceased held accounts with you can check mylostaccount.org.uk . This is a free service and can be a useful help track down a complete list.

The Government’s Tell us once  service allows you to complete a single online form to tell the various Government departments. These include:

• HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) – to deal with tax and cancel benefits
• Passport Office – to cancel a British passport
• Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) – to cancel a driving licence
• Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) – to cancel benefits, such as Income Support
• Local council – to cancel Housing Benefit, Council Tax Benefit, a Blue Badge, inform council housing services and remove the person from the electoral register
• Public sector or armed forces pension schemes – to stop pension payments

For TV, phone, and broadband subscriptions, you’ll need to contact the provider to see if you can cancel any outstanding payments, or to transfer the contract to your name.

The personal representative(s) hold the legal responsibility of dealing with the deceased affairs.

If there’s a Will, you might need to apply for a Grant of Probate, which is a legal document giving you the authority to deal with a deceased person’s affairs.

If there isn’t a Will, the legal document is called Letters of Administration.

In Scotland, in either case, the document is called a Certificate of Confirmation. We’ll let you know if we need any of these documents.

If you're a personal representative and feel you can't deal with this yourself, you can ask a solicitor to take care of some or all of it for you. Solicitors will charge a fee for this service so make sure you understand and agree before deciding.

If you want to deal with the administration yourself, you can find more information on Probate at: Applying for probate - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk )

We’ll send you a unique reference code to use whenever you contact us about the deceased’s Estate. If you are writing to us, we request you include this reference on your letters. And if you call us, this code will be required to discuss the account. 

If there are any accounts which need to be closed, we’ll aim to make this as easy as possible for you.

If it’s a single account:

1. When we receive the Death Certificate reference number (or one of the variations – Death Certificate, Death Certificate verification form, Extract of the Death Certificate or Coroner’s Certificate of the fact of death), we’ll send you a letter confirming the balance of the account(s) and the interest accrued.
2. We’ll add a restriction to the account to stop any money going in or out.
3. We’ll let you know if we need to see any further documents for a single account before we can close it. For example, we may ask you to complete a Statutory Declaration or send us a Grant of Probate/Certificate of Confirmation.

If it’s a joint account:

1. As soon as we’ve been told, we’ll turn off any marketing correspondence. As some of our marketing material may already have been created it could take up to 8 weeks for this to stop completely. If the account is shared, the second customer’s marketing preferences will stay the same.
2. We won’t add any restrictions and once we've received the Death Certificate/certificate reference number the account will become a single account.

After we receive the Death Certificate reference (or equivalent for the customer) we will need to see either the Grant of Probate (and Letter of Authority) or Statutory Declaration, in addition to some of the below:  

If the account is being closed to the representative’s existing Sainsbury’s Bank account:

1. We need the documents mentioned above, i.e., Grant of Probate or Statutory Declaration.
2. The details of the Sainsbury’s Bank account the funds are to be sent to.  

If the account is being closed to an external bank:

1. We require one piece of identification for the external account holder. Our acceptable ID documents list can be found here . This must be an original or Certified Copy. 
2. A copy of a bank statement dated within the last 3 months for the account any credit balances have to be sent to. 

Balance below £100

1. We only need details of where to send the funds to.

A certified copy is a photocopy of the original document which has been signed, stamped, and dated by an independent professional (for example a doctor, solicitor, notary, accountant, independent financial advisor, or post office/bank branch official). Click here to see our full list of approved certifiers .

We’ll ask you to complete this form if the total balance of the account(s) is between £100.00 and £14,999. There’s a section to complete with bank details of where the money is to be sent. We also need to see the Statutory Declaration/Indemnity Form signed by all the representatives of the Estate.

For balances between £15,000 and £24,999 the form needs to be signed and declared before a solicitor, Commissioner for Oaths, Justice of the Peace or Notary Public. If we’ve not been advised that a Grant of Probate is being requested, we can close the account when you return the completed Statutory Declaration.

This is a legal document and is an Executor’s legal authority to deal with all the assets of the Estate. Probate is granted by the Registries in England, Wales and Northern Ireland and Confirmation is granted by the Sheriff Courts in Scotland.

This document will confirm the Executor of the Estate and who has been authorised to deal with the funds in the account.

Grant of Probate (England, Wales and Northern Ireland) or Certificate of Confirmation (Scotland) must be applied for through the courts, if the balance in the account is £25,000 or more.

We need to see the original or a certified copy of the Grant of Probate/Certificate of Confirmation together with a letter that has been signed by the Executors named on the legal document. This letter must advise us where the money is to be sent.

Regardless of the balance, if we’re made aware that the Executor/Personal Representative is applying for Probate/Confirmation, we must see the original or certified copy of the Grant of Probate/Certificate of Confirmation before we can continue with the closure of the account. When we’ve got everything, we need, we’ll close the account.

If the deceased had any cash ISAs with us, they would remain open until the deceased’s personal representatives close the ISA as part of their administration of the Estate or for a maximum of 3 years from the date of death, whichever is the earlier.

There is an option for the surviving spouse/civil partner to claim the value of the deceased parties ISA. This is referred to as an Additional Permitted Subscription Allowance (APS).

From the 6 April 2015 a spouse or civil partner has been entitled to make use of the ISA benefits that the deceased had built up in any ISAs they had if they passed away on or after 3 December 2014. This means you’re allowed to make payments to your ISA, up to the value of the APS, on top of the annual ISA allowance.

Key information:

• The APS allows the surviving spouse/civil partner to deposit funds into their own Cash ISA account. This means the ISA benefits of the deceased’s ISA isn’t lost if you make use of the APS allowance.
• The claim is the closing balance held in the deceased’s Cash ISA(s). This value is an addition to the spouse’s/civil partner’s own subscription limit.
• The surviving spouse/civil partner may subscribe their APS allowance with either Sainsbury’s Bank or another financial institution, providing they accept APS transfers.
• Before we can begin an APS transfer, the Cash ISA held by the deceased must be closed first and funds paid to a nominated account as we can't pay funds using APS directly to a Cash ISA.
• All APS transfers to Sainsbury’s Bank must be paid by cheque(s).
• As these ISA funds form part of the Estate the balance must be paid to the Executors of the Estate before an APS can be claimed.
• HMRC guidelines state that the claim can only be made once.
• There are restrictions in eligibility for claiming an APS; for example, the deceased and the surviving spouse/civil partner must not have been separated at the date of death.
• You’re not restricted to using the APS allowance in the same type of ISA the deceased customer held.

Further details on transferring to other banks or financial institutions and eligible ISA products can be found at www.gov.uk .

Inheritance Tax is a tax on the Estate (the property, money, and possessions) of someone who has died.

If the Estate is worth more that £325,000, Inheritance Tax will need to be paid before we can release any money. We need to see a completed IHT423 form which can be downloaded from Inheritance Tax - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk).

You don’t normally need to pay Inheritance Tax if the Estate’s value is below the £325,000 threshold, but you will still need to report it to HMRC.

Please see the information here. 

When we receive the Death Certificate reference number (or one of the variations - Death Certificate, Death Certificate verification form, Extract of the Death Certificate or Coroner’s Certificate of the fact of death), we’ll send you a letter confirming the balance of the account(s) and the interest accrued. We’ll let you know if we need to see any further documents for a single account before we can close it. For example, we may ask you to complete a Statutory Declaration or send us a Grant of Probate/Certificate of Confirmation.

If it’s a single account, we’ll add a restriction to the account to stop any money going in or out.

If it’s a joint account:

• We won’t add any restrictions and once we've received the Death Certificate/certificate reference number the account will become a single account.
• As soon as we’ve been told, we’ll turn off any marketing correspondence. As some of our marketing material may already have been created it could take up to 8 weeks for this to stop completely. If the account is shared, the second customer’s marketing preferences will stay the same.

We will need to confirm the identity of the solicitor and or/solicitor's firm. If we are unable to verify the solicitor and or/solicitor's firm from their initial letter, we will be in touch advising further steps. 

After we receive the Death Certificate reference (or equivalent for the customer) and have verified the solicitor, we will need to see either the Grant of Probate (and Letter of Authority) or Statutory Declaration. 

• We’ll ask you to complete this form if the total balance of the account(s) is between £100.00 and £14,999. There’s a section to complete with the bank details of the account the money has to be sent to. We also need to see the Statutory Declaration/Indemnity Form signed by all the representatives of the Estate.
• For balances between £15,000 and £24,999 the form needs to be signed and declared before a solicitor, Commissioner for Oaths, Justice of the Peace or Notary Public. If we’ve not been advised that a Grant of Probate is being requested, we can close the account when you return the completed Statutory Declaration.
• For balances over £25,000 we will need to see the original or a certified copy of the Grant of Probate/Certificate of Confirmation document/Letters of Administration.
• Regardless of the balance, if we’re made aware that the Executor/Personal Representative is applying for Probate/Confirmation, we must see the original or certified copy of the Grant of Probate/Certificate of Confirmation before we can continue with the closure of the account. Once we’ve received everything we need, we’ll close the account.

Click here to see our full list of approved certifiers .

Grant of Probate (England, Wales and Northern Ireland) or Certificate of Confirmation (Scotland) must be applied for through the courts, if the balance in the account is £25,000 or more.

• This is a legal document and is an Executor’s legal authority to deal with all the assets of the Estate. Probate is granted by the Registries in England, Wales and Northern Ireland and Confirmation is granted by the Sheriff Courts in Scotland.
• This document will confirm the Executor of the Estate and who has been authorised to deal with the funds in the account.
• We will need to see the original or a certified copy of the Grant of Probate/Certificate of Confirmation together with a letter that has been signed by the Executors named on the legal document. This letter must also advise us where the money should be sent to.
• Regardless of the balance, if we’re made aware that the Executor/Personal Representative is applying for Probate/Confirmation, we must see the original or certified copy of the Grant of Probate/Certificate of Confirmation before we can continue with the closure of the account. Once we've received everything we need, we’ll close the account.

If the deceased had any cash ISAs with us, they would remain open until the deceased’s personal representatives close the ISA as part of their administration of the Estate or for a maximum of 3 years from the date of death, whichever is the earlier.

There is an option for the surviving spouse/civil partner to claim the value of the deceased parties ISA. This is referred to as an Additional Permitted Subscription Allowance (APS).

From the 6 April 2015 a spouse or civil partner has been entitled to make use of the ISA benefits that the deceased had built up in any ISAs they had if they passed away on or after 3 December 2014. This means you’re allowed to make payments to your ISA, up to the value of the APS, on top of the annual ISA allowance.

Key information:

• The APS allows the surviving spouse/civil partner to deposit funds into their own Cash ISA account. This means the ISA benefits of the deceased’s ISA isn’t lost if you make use of the APS allowance.
• The claim is the closing balance held in the deceased’s Cash ISA(s). This value is an addition to the spouse’s/civil partner’s own subscription limit.
• The surviving spouse/civil partner may subscribe their APS allowance with either Sainsbury’s Bank or another financial institution, providing they accept APS transfers.
• Before we can begin an APS transfer, the Cash ISA held by the deceased must be closed first and funds paid to a nominated account as we can't pay funds using APS directly to a Cash ISA.
• All APS transfers to Sainsbury’s Bank must be paid by cheque(s).
• As these ISA funds form part of the Estate the balance must be paid to the Executors of the Estate before an APS can be claimed.
• HMRC guidelines state that the claim can only be made once.
• There are restrictions in eligibility for claiming an APS; for example, the deceased and the surviving spouse/civil partner must not have been separated at the date of death.
• You’re not restricted to using the APS allowance in the same type of ISA the deceased customer held.
• Further details on transferring to other banks or financial institutions and eligible ISA products can be found at www.gov.uk .

If the Estate is worth more that £325,000, Inheritance Tax will need to be paid before we’ll release any money. We need to see a completed IHT423 form which can be downloaded from Inheritance Tax - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk) .

If the deceased was the main cardholder, then we’ll close the account, cancel the card and stop charging any fees or interest on the outstanding balance.

If the deceased was the additional cardholder, then we’ll update our records and the account will continue.

We’ll send you a unique reference code to use whenever you contact us about the deceased’s Estate. 

If you are writing to us, we request you include this reference on your letters. And if you call us, this code will be required to discuss the account. 

We will send a letter with the balance due on the account.

• It’s the Estate that’s responsible for paying the debt – if there’s no money available, the personal representative/Executor won’t be asked to cover what is owed by the person who passed away.
• If we’re advised there is no estate, or we don’t receive payment on the account, we’ll contact our bereavement partner, Philips & Cohen (PCA), who support us in resolving any outstanding balances due on accounts.

Phillips & Cohen are our bereavement partner and they’re the UK’s only dedicated deceased account management business, offering support and guidance to help resolve outstanding accounts.

After we receive the Death Certificate reference (or equivalent) for the customer, we will need to see either the Grant of Probate (and Letter of Authority) or Statutory Declaration along with the below. 

• If the balance is below £100, we will need the details the Executor's account where the credit balance should be sent.  
• If the balance is between £100.00 and £24,999, we’ll send a Statutory Declaration/Indemnity Form for you to sign and return. There’s a section to complete with the bank details of where the money has to be sent to. We also need to see the Statutory Declaration/Indemnity Form signed by all the representatives of the Estate.
• For balances over £25,000 we will need to see the original or a certified copy of the Grant of Probate/Certificate of Confirmation document/Letters of Administration and a Letter of Authority signed by everyone on the Grant. 
• Regardless of the balance, if we’re made aware that the Executor/Personal Representative is applying for Probate/Confirmation, we must see the original or certified copy of the Grant of Probate/Certificate of Confirmation before we can continue with the closure of the account. Once we've received everything we need, we’ll close the account.

Grant of Probate (England, Wales and Northern Ireland) or Certificate of Confirmation (Scotland) must be applied for through the courts, if the balance in the account is £25,000 or more.

• This is a legal document and is an Executor’s legal authority to deal with all the assets of the Estate. Probate is granted by the Registries in England, Wales and Northern Ireland and Confirmation is granted by the Sheriff Courts in Scotland.
• This document will confirm the Executor of the Estate and who has been authorised to deal with the funds in the account.
• We will need to see the original or a certified copy of the Grant of Probate/Certificate of Confirmation together with a letter that has been signed by the Executors named on the legal document. This letter must also advise us where the money has to be sent to.
• Regardless of the balance, if we’re made aware that the Executor/Personal Representative is applying for Probate/Confirmation, we must see the original or certified copy of the Grant of Probate/Certificate of Confirmation before we can continue with the closure of the account. Once we’ve got everything we need, we’ll close the account.

We’ll ask you to complete this form if the total balance of the account(s) is between £100.00 and £14,999. There’s a section to complete with the bank account details of where the money has to be sent to. We also need to see the Statutory Declaration/Indemnity Form signed by all the representatives of the Estate.

For balances between £15,000 and £24,999 the form needs to be signed and declared before a solicitor, Commissioner for Oaths, Justice of the Peace or Notary Public. If we’ve not been advised that a Grant of Probate is being requested, we can close the account once you've returned the completed Statutory Declaration.

Please see the information here. 

When we receive the Death Certificate reference number (or one of the variations - Death Certificate, Death Certificate verification form, Extract of the Death Certificate or Coroner’s Certificate of the fact of death), we’ll send you a letter confirming the balance of the account(s). 

If the deceased was the main cardholder, then we’ll close the account, cancel the card, and stop charging any fees or interest on the outstanding balance.

If the deceased was the additional cardholder, then we’ll update our records and the account will continue.

We will send a letter with the balance due on the account.  

If we’re advised there is no estate, or we don’t receive a payment on the account, we’ll contact our bereavement partner, Philips & Cohen (PCA), who support us in resolving any outstanding balances due on accounts.

Phillips & Cohen are our bereavement partner and they’re the UK’s only dedicated deceased account management business, offering support and guidance to help resolve outstanding accounts.

After we receive the Death Certificate reference (or equivalent) for the customer, we will need to see either the Grant of Probate (and Letter of Authority) or Statutory Declaration along with the below. 

• If the balance is below £100, we will need the details of the Executor account where the credit balance should be sent.  
• If the balance is between £100.00 and £24,999, we’ll send a Statutory Declaration/Indemnity Form for you to sign and return. There’s a section to complete with the bank account details of where the money has to be sent to. We also need to see the Statutory Declaration/Indemnity Form signed by all the representatives of the Estate.
• For balances over £25,000 we will need to see the original or a certified copy of the Grant of Probate/Certificate of Confirmation document/Letters of Administration and a Letter of Authority signed by everyone on the Grant. 

Grant of Probate (England, Wales and Northern Ireland) or Certificate of Confirmation (Scotland) must be applied for through the courts, if the balance in the account is £25,000 or more.

• This is a legal document and is an Executor’s legal authority to deal with all the assets of the Estate. Probate is granted by the Registries in England, Wales and Northern Ireland and Confirmation is granted by the Sheriff Courts in Scotland.
• This document will confirm the Executor of the Estate and who has been authorised to deal with the funds in the account.
• We will need to see the original or a certified copy of the Grant of Probate/Certificate of Confirmation together with a letter that has been signed by the Executors named on the legal document. This letter must also advise us where the money has to be sent to.
• Regardless of the balance, if we’re made aware that the Executor/Personal Representative is applying for Probate/Confirmation, we must see the original or certified copy of the Grant of Probate/Certificate of Confirmation before we can continue with the closure of the account. Once we've received everything we need, we’ll close the account.

If the deceased has a loan, solely in their name:

• We’ll send you a unique reference code to use whenever you contact us about the deceased’s Estate. If you are writing to us, we request you include this reference on your letters. And if you call us, this code will be required to discuss the account. 

If the loan is in joint names:

• We’ll send a letter to the surviving account holder advising them of the balance and the options they have relating to the loan.
• The surviving account holder may wish to repay the loan in full, repay it with proceeds from the Estate or keep the loan in their sole name.
• If the surviving account holder wants to repay the full balance, we’ll provide a settlement figure and the account details to pay the loan off.
• If the surviving account holder wishes to keep the loan account open, we can remove the deceased party from the account and all future correspondence/statements will be sent in their name only.
• If you’re worried about making the repayments on the loan, please call us on 08085 40 50 60.

We will send a letter with the balance due on the account.

• It’s the Estate that’s responsible for paying the debt – if there’s no money available, the personal representative/Executor won’t be asked to cover what is owed by the person who passed away.
• If we’re advised there is no estate or we don’t receive a payment on the account, we’ll contact our bereavement partner, Philips & Cohen (PCA), who support us in resolving any outstanding balances due on accounts.
• Mailing may be sent out for a notice of sums in arrears (NOSIA’s) in the deceased person’s name. This is something we are looking into stopping, and we apologise for any distress this may cause you. It is however a legal requirement that we issue these if the loan had been behind in payments and it would have been issued regularly to the customer to keep them informed of their financial position.

Phillips & Cohen are our bereavement partner and they’re the UK’s only dedicated deceased account management business, offering support and guidance to help resolve outstanding accounts.

After we receive the Death Certificate reference (or equivalent) for the customer, we will need to see either the Grant of Probate (and Letter of Authority) or Statutory Declaration along with the below. 

• If the balance is below £100, we will need the details the executor account where the credit balance should be sent to.  
• If the balance is between £100.00 and £24,999, we’ll send a Statutory Declaration/Indemnity Form for you to sign and return. There’s a section to complete with the bank account details of where the money has to be sent to. We also need to see the Statutory Declaration/Indemnity Form signed by all the representatives of the Estate.
• For balances over £25,000 we will need to see the original or a certified copy of the Grant of Probate/Certificate of Confirmation document/Letters of Administration and a Letter of Authority signed by everyone on the Grant.

Grant of Probate (England, Wales and Northern Ireland) or Certificate of Confirmation (Scotland) must be applied for through the courts, if the balance in the account is £25,000 or more.

• This is a legal document and is an Executor’s legal authority to deal with all the assets of the Estate. Probate is granted by the Registries in England, Wales and Northern Ireland and Confirmation is granted by the Sheriff Courts in Scotland.
• This document will confirm the Executor of the Estate and who has been authorised to deal with the funds in the account.
• We need to see the original or a certified copy of the Grant of Probate/Certificate of Confirmation together with a letter that has been signed by the Executors named on the legal document. This letter must also advise us where the money has to be sent to.
• Regardless of the balance, if we’re made aware that the Executor/Personal Representative is applying for Probate/Confirmation, we must see the original or certified copy of the Grant of Probate/Certificate of Confirmation before we can continue with the closure of the account. Once we’ve received everything we need, we’ll close the account.

Please see the information here. 

If the deceased has a loan, solely in their name:

• We will send a letter with the balance due on the account(s).
• If we’re advised there is no estate, or we don’t receive a payment on the account, we’ll contact our bereavement partner, Philips & Cohen (PCA), who support us in resolving any outstanding balances due on accounts.
• Mailing may be sent out for a notice of sums in arrears (NOSIA’s) in the deceased person’s name. This is something we are looking into stopping, and we apologise for any distress this may cause you. It is however a legal requirement that we issue these if the loan had been behind in payments and it would have been issued regularly to the customer to keep them informed of their financial position.

If the loan is in joint names:

• We’ll send a letter to the surviving account holder advising them of the balance, and the options they have relating to the loan.

We will send a letter with the balance due on the account.

• If we’re advised there is no estate, or we don’t receive a payment on the account, we’ll contact our bereavement partner, Philips & Cohen (PCA), who support us in resolving any outstanding balances due on accounts.

Phillips & Cohen are our bereavement partner and they’re the UK’s only dedicated deceased account management business, offering support and guidance to help resolve outstanding accounts.

After we receive the Death Certificate reference (or equivalent) for the customer, we will need to see either the Grant of Probate (and Letter of Authority) or Statutory Declaration along with the below. 

• If the balance is below £100, we need the details the Executor's account where the credit balance should be sent.  
• If the balance is between £100.00 and £24,999, we’ll send a Statutory Declaration/Indemnity Form for you to sign and return. There’s a section to complete with the bank account details of where the money has to be sent to. We also need to see the Statutory Declaration/Indemnity Form signed by all the representatives of the Estate.
• For balances over £25,000 we will need to see the original or a certified copy of the Grant of Probate/Certificate of Confirmation document/Letters of Administration and a Letter of Authority signed by everyone on the Grant.

Grant of Probate (England, Wales and Northern Ireland) or Certificate of Confirmation (Scotland) must be applied for through the courts, if the balance in the account is £25,000 or more.

• This is a legal document and is an Executor’s legal authority to deal with all the assets of the Estate. Probate is granted by the Registries in England, Wales and Northern Ireland and Confirmation is granted by the Sheriff Courts in Scotland.
• This document will confirm the Executor of the Estate and who has been authorised to deal with the funds in the account.
• We will need to see the original or a certified copy of the Grant of Probate/Certificate of Confirmation together with a letter that has been signed by the Executors named on the legal document. This letter must also advise us where the money has to be sent to.
• Regardless of the balance, if we’re made aware that the Executor/Personal Representative is applying for Probate/Confirmation, we must see the original or certified copy of the Grant of Probate/Certificate of Confirmation before we can continue with the closure of the account. Once we’ve got everything we need, we’ll close the account.

This can be used if the customer holds both a savings product and a loan/credit with an outstanding balance. 

Right of Set Off is a legal process, contained within the savings accounts terms and conditions that enables Sainsbury’s Bank to apply balances held by the customer in their savings account against balances owed to us in the same name, providing we have acknowledgement from the personal representative/Executor.

• After we’ve confirmed the death, we will need to check what accounts the customer held with us and the deceased’s situation.
• We will contact the representative to inform them about Right of Set Off if applicable.

If the executor notifies us that the deceased held other products with us, e.g. insurance products or Argos cards, we will notify the relevant departments so you don’t have to.

This can be used if the customer holds both a savings product and a loan/credit with an outstanding balance. 

Right of Set Off is a legal process, contained within the savings accounts terms and conditions that enables Sainsbury’s Bank to apply balances held by the customer in their savings account against balances owed to us in the same name, providing we have acknowledgement from the personal representative/Executor.

• After we’ve confirmed the death, we will need to check what accounts the customer held with us and the deceased’s situation.
• We will contact the representative to inform them about Right of Set Off if applicable.

If the executor notifies us that the deceased held other products with us, e.g. insurance products or Argos cards, we will notify the relevant departments so you don’t have to.

Death and bereavement – www.gov.uk/browse/births-deaths-marriages/death 

Tell Us Once – What to do after someone dies: Tell Us Once - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk) 
Tell Us Once is a service that lets you report a death to most government organisations in one go.

The Probate Service – Applying for probate - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk) 
For guidance specifically on dealing with probate and inheritance tax - and a good source for downloading documents.

The General Register Office – General Register Office - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk) 
The General Register Office holds records of births, deaths, marriages, civil partnerships, stillbirths and adoptions in England and Wales.

The General Register Office – Northern Ireland - General Register Office for Northern Ireland - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk) 
The General Register Office for Northern Ireland holds records of births, deaths, marriages, civil partnerships, stillbirths, and adoptions in Northern Ireland.

The National Records of Scotland – National Records of Scotland - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk) 
The National Records of Scotland store records of births, deaths, marriages, civil partnerships, divorces, stillbirths - they’re also responsible for the Scottish national archives, which contain government documents and public records.

HM Revenue & Customs – Welcome to GOV.UK (www.gov.uk) 
The best place to find Government Services and Information.

The National Will Register – Certainty - The National Will Register 
Certainty Will Search and Will Registration is exclusively recommended by key organisations and used by thousands of solicitors, the public, charities and financial institutions to register Wills and search for Wills.

MoneyHelper – www.moneyhelper.org.uk 
MoneyHelper offers free and impartial advice to help you manage your money and make the most of your finances.

Citizens Advice Bureau – www.citizensadvice.org.uk 
Citizens Advice offers free legal information and impartial advice on a variety of topics, including contacts for counselling.

Cruse Bereavement Care – www.cruse.org.uk 
Cruse provide specialist bereavement experts that can offer support in coping with grief following the death of someone close.

Facing Bereavement – www.facingbereavement.co.uk 
Provides expert guidance and advice on how to get through bereavement and how to look to the future.

Mind – www.mind.org.uk 
Provides information on bereavement, where to go for support, and suggestions for helping yourself and others through grief.

Samaritans – www.samaritans.org 
The Samaritans provide support for anyone who’s struggling to cope, or who needs someone to listen without judgement or pressure.

Administrator
The person appointed to manage an Estate when there isn’t a Will, or when the Executor is unable, or unwilling, to act. The administrator can also be referred to as the deceased's personal representative. This person is normally a family member or close friend of the deceased.

Beneficiary
A person who’s entitled to receive money, funds or property from a Will or intestacy.

Confirmation of the Estate
In Scotland, this is the legal document obtained from the court after a death. It’s the equivalent to the Grant of Probate obtained in England and Wales.

Death Certificate
The Death Certificate is a legal document issued by the Registrar when a person dies. It’s a copy of the signed entry in the death register, and confirms the date, cause, and location of death.

Estate
This is the total value of everything an individual owns, such as money, property and possessions, and everything that’s registered in their name, less any debts.

Executor
This is the person named in a Will, who carries out the wishes outlined in that Will.

Grant of Probate (GOP)
This is an official document that confirms the Will is valid together with the names of the Executors who are legally entitled to administer the Estate and to follow its wishes.

Inheritance Tax
The tax paid to HMRC on the deceased’s Estate when the value of the estate exceeds a certain amount.

Intestacy
This term is used when someone dies without making a valid Will.

Legacy
A specific gift or monetary gift made in a Will.

Letters of Administration / Grant of Letters of Administration
An official court document that proves you have the authority to deal with the deceased’s Estate. This allows the personal representative the right to manage the Estate when there’s no Will.

Medical Certificate of Cause of Death (MCCD)
When someone dies, a doctor involved in their care completes a medical certificate of cause of death. It details the cause of death and you need it to register the death. The Death Certificate will be given to you after the death has been registered.

Next of Kin (NOK)
This is normally the surviving spouse or children.nIf there's no Will, it's the responsibility of the next of kin to administer and distribute the deceased's Estate according to the laws of intestacy.

Personal Representative
The person responsible for dealing with the Estate of someone who’s died, either the Executor, administrator or the next of kin.

Power of Attorney
A power of attorney is a legal document where someone appoints a person to act on their behalf or represent them to plan for the future. It's drawn up when you have the capacity to do so. It gives another person, known as the attorney, the authority to deal with aspects of your affairs. This could relate to financial/property matters and/or personal welfare. There are different types of power of attorney, and they differ between England and Wales and Northern Ireland and Scotland, so you need to be aware of that.

Probate
This refers to the legal right to deal with a deceased person’s affairs. It’s sometimes called ‘administering the Estate’.

Probate Registry
The name of the public body responsible for issuing grants of probate and grants of letters of administration. There are local District Probate Registries around the UK.

Trustee
An individual given control or powers of administration of property in trust with a legal obligation to administer it solely for the purposes specified.

Will
A legally binding document signed by a person, which states what they would like to happen to their assets/Estate when they die. This may also contain wishes about their funeral or who they want to look after any young children they may leave behind.