Old Bank of Scotland account

graham44

My church has found it has an old account with BOS with £250 odd pound in it and last used we believe in 2004. Apparently 5 years ago the church tried to withdraw it but the branch said it could only be withdrawn by original signatories. Recently following some enquiries we tracked down who we thought they were. 2 of them attended the bank again but were given the same story and no cash could be withdrawn.

So how can we overcome this apparent impasse? It seems wrong that BOS can hold on to this money with us having no prospect of recovery.

agrinnall

Have you actually asked BOS who their records show that the signatories are? Presumably it was not the people that you thought it was if they were not acceptable.

graham44

They refuse to say

NewToTheUkAgain

To be fair I think it would be the churches responsibility to know who would be opening accounts.

I empathise with their situation but this really is information that they should be aware of.

etienneg

I was in a similar situation with my church a few years ago, though for a bit less money! I wrote (in as pleasant a manner as possible) to the building society concerned with as much information as I had, and simply asked how to proceed. Obviously they had to investigate and ask for relevant information, which I provided each time to the best of my ability, explaining any inability to answer and offering additional information that might help, each time again asking how they wanted me to proceed. It took a while, but I found them generally helpful and in the end they paid out the money.

What information do you have about the account? How did it come to light? Do you have an address on a statement, for example? Do you have church financial records that might help? These may have been archived into the diocesan records (Anglican or Catholic) or the County Records Office (non-conformist denominations). Is the account in the name of the church, and does this clearly identify the individual church?

In my case, the church was a registered charity, so I could point them at the Charity Commission web site which lists the current trustees (viewable by the public), so that added credibility to our claim. One difficulty was that the account was not simply in the name of the church, but an organisation within it, so only obliquely referenced the church name.

In the end, the bank has no right to withhold the money from the rightful owner, but of course does need to ensure that it has identified the rightful owner. Be persistent but always understanding of this duty of the bank. They should have a process for dealing with such a situation, so if you keep asking then eventually they will tell you what they need. For example, if and when you really have exhausted all the possibilities for signatories, say that others have either died or moved away and their whereabouts are unknown, so what do you need to do next? Keep throwing the ball back to them.

xylophone

In what name does the account stand? ( eg St John's and St Jude's Renovation Fund)?

I doubt that it would be in the names of the signatories.

If as above, I would imagine that the Vicar should write to the bank explaining that the account holds church funds but that there is no record of the names of the signatories.

He could ask the bank to write to the signatories at the address (es) held for them?

jonesMUFCforever

There is a chance that the account is now dormant - the original signatories would have to re-identify themselves (if still alive).
The church might be able to provide an indemnity to the bank but getting somebody from the bank to agree to that might be a problem.

graham44

Thanks all - most helpful.