I think Halifax closed ISA incorrectly

lizzieb1961

When my Father in Law died my Mother in Law went in to the Halifax to advise them and I think they have misadvised her.


My Father in Law had 2 cash ISA accounts which I believe she should have been able to transfer over in to her name using the new ruling that came into effect on 6th April last year. However the Halifax just closed them both and paid the cash into an ordinary account in her name.


My sister in law wrote to them asking for clarification and the Halifax then rang my Mother in Law to say they didn't know anything about this new ruling (despite there being advice about it on the bereavement page on their website!) and admitting they had made a mistake.


They asked her to make an appointment to go into the branch to discuss it which she has done for next week but today she received a phonecall from someone else at the branch asking for clarification on why she was coming in!! When she explained the girl told her there wasn't much point as they wouldn't be able to do anything about it in the branch, things like that are dealt with over the phone!!! Now my Mother in Law is 91 and may well not have explained herself very well but I think they are being quite outrageous with this attitude. I also think they are trying to take advantage of her age and circumstances in the hope that she won't take it any further. (She might not but the family certainly will!)


Anyway, my question is - has anyone else experienced anything similar and if so how did you get it resolved? Can the bank simply re-open the ISA's to the position before they made the error and then transfer them over to my Mother in Law's existing ISA's?


Any help/advice greatly appreciated.

antrobus

lizzieb1961 wrote: »

....My Father in Law had 2 cash ISA accounts which I believe she should have been able to transfer over in to her name using the new ruling that came into effect on 6th April last year. However the Halifax just closed them both and paid the cash into an ordinary account in her name.....

No, you can't transfer ISA accounts into the name of the surviving spouse. The new arrangements (which apply to deaths after 6th December 2014) are that the surviving spouse gets an "additional permitted subscription" equivalent to the value of the deceased's ISA account.

Note that the surviving spouse gets this "additional permitted subscription" irrespective of whether they actually inherit the money that was in the ISA. But it is entirely down to the surviving spouse to contact an ISA manager and open an account and claim the allowance. I believe that you have three years to claim the allowance.

The Halifax did the right thing by closing the accounts. That's what they are supposed to do. ISA benefits cease on death. It's up to your MIL whether or not she wants to claim the APS. She should contact the Halifax and ask them for the forms. (There must be some forms; you have to make a decleration.)

xylophone

See http://static.halifax.co.uk/assets/pdf/isas/pdf/cash-isa-account-conditions.pdf on page 12

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/personalfinance/money-saving-tips/jessicainvestigates/12126994/Halifax-messed-up-Isa-transfer-after-my-wife-died.html

http://www.thisismoney.co.uk/money/saving/article-3161124/Savers-want-spouse-inherit-Isa-allowance-kept-dark-banks-building-societies.html

xylophone

http://moneyfacts.co.uk/guides/isas/inheriting-isas--the-new-rules/

may also be worth a look.

badger09

Others are quicker at searching than I am, but these might help anyway


This is HMRC's guidance

https://www.gov.uk/individual-savings-accounts/if-you-move-abroad-or-die


These are Nationwide's and HSBC's guides. I couldn't find the Halifax equivalent

http://www.nationwide.co.uk/support/support-articles/manage-your-account/isa-inheritance/isa-inheritance-about


https://www.hsbc.co.uk/1/PA_esf-ca-app-content/content/uk/content_static/en/pdfs/en/isa-spousal-inheritance-questions-and-answers.pdf

lizzieb1961

Thankyou for the clarification it's most helpful.


However, I still feel the Halifax should have made her aware of the option so that she could make an informed decision. It also doesn't explain why they said they didn't know anything about it!!

Flobberchops

Oh dear. What you're seeing there is the buck being passed so furiously that it's become an indistinct blur.

Possibly the best thing to do would be to gather together all relevant documents, forms of ID, records of communications etc; accompany your mother to a branch of Halifax, sit down and inform the staff you won't be leaving until somebody (preferably the manager) has taken ownership of this mess and resolved it to your satisfaction. Phrases like "formal complaint" and "ombudsman" tend to help grease the groove in situations like this. "Not my department" is the attitude you expect from a 17-year old work experience boy in Woolworths, not a "professional" in the finance sector.

It's a sad indictment of retail banking that the frontline staff are so uninformed and so willing to shrug their shoulders when their customers' money is at stake.

lizzieb1961

I know Flobberchops, I think their whole attitude & approach is quite outrageous! Unfortunately I live 300 miles away from her so I can't go in with her but I want to arm my sister in law with all the facts so that she can. I'll see what they say on Monday but if we don't get any joy I WILL be putting in a formal written complaint that's for sure.

jimjames

lizzieb1961 wrote: »

However, I still feel the Halifax should have made her aware of the option so that she could make an informed decision. It also doesn't explain why they said they didn't know anything about it!!

It's only a relatively new regulation considering ISAs have been out for around 16 years and is probably encountered very infrequently so it's understandable that they may not know especially if they are being asked confused questions too. But when they have been specifically asked they should have referred it if they were unsure or unaware themselves.

pinkdalek

Halifax have done the right thing, it looks like this has not been explained clearly to you.
Go back to Halifax, MIL has 6 months (i think) to claim her APS allowance and put it in an ISA.
There should be notes on both customers' files to support it.