Bereavement services

You’ll need to register a death within 5 days in England and Wales and within 8 days in Scotland. You can do this at any register office, but you may need to make an appointment. However, if you visit the one in the area where the person passed away then the documents (including the death certificate) you need can be given to you that day.

Find your nearest register office in:

England or Wales
Scotland
Northern Ireland

If the person died abroad you can find out how to Register a death overseas

You’ll need to take the medical certificate signed by the doctor with you and preferably if you have them also:

• Proof of their address
• Copy of their ID

If you don’t have these documents readily available then the coroner can deal with this if necessary.

It’s a good idea to get several copies of the death certificate as you can then send a copy to all the organisations that need one, if you can afford to. This means you won’t have to wait for your only copy to be returned each time you tell someone and can speed-up the process.

You can inform us in person, by phone or via post.  We will need to see some documentation.

In store

If you come to a store, then please bring with you the following documents:

• Death Certificate: This must be the original death certificate, a certified copy, a death certificate verification form, or an interim death certificate.
• Proof of your identification: This can be a passport, UK issued driving licence or ID card, for example. We won’t need this if you already have a bank account with us yourself.

Additional documents to bring

We may also need to see the following documents if they exist:

The Will: Normally, this explains what should happen to a person’s money, property and possessions after their death, and who should manage their estate.

• If there is a Will:
  Please bring the original copy with you.

If you think the Will is currently in a Metro Bank Safe Deposit Box, please let us know.

• If there isn’t a Will:
  We can still help you with collecting a person’s estate, if the value held with Metro Bank is less than £15,000. This will be in line with Government guidelines on How to make a claim to a deceased person's estate

Grant of Probate or Letters of Administration:

If the value of a person’s estate with Metro Bank is over £25,000, or they hold a Safe Deposit Box in one of our stores, then we will need to see one of these documents. They give you the legal right to organise an estate.

• If there is a Will and you are named as an executor, then you will need a Grant of Probate.
• If there isn’t a Will, no executor is named, or those named are unwilling or unable to act, then you will need Letters of Administration.

How to apply for a Grant of Probate/ Letters of Administration

To apply for a Grant of Probate you will need to:

1. Complete a probate application form (PA1)
2. Complete an Inheritance Tax form – whether or not you think Inheritance Tax is owed
3. Send your application to your local Probate Registry
4. Swear an oath

You can find the probate forms online at hmctsformfinder.justice.gov.uk or by calling 0300 123 1072.

The tax forms are online at HMRC

By phone

If you prefer, then please call our dedicated team on 0203 824 4815. They will talk you through the process and help explain where you can find the forms you will need to complete.

By post

You can write to us with the relevant documents as set out here to: Bereavement Services Team, Metro Bank, One Southampton Row, London, WC1B 5HA.

Once we have all the necessary documents, we can help you organise any money, property and possessions held with us.

You’ll need to visit us in store to make these final arrangements and complete the necessary forms.

This is what will happen with each type of account:

Sole Personal Accounts:

Any funds in the account will be forwarded to an identified beneficiary. We will then close the account. 

This means that any Direct Debits or standing orders from the account will be cancelled. Therefore, if these payments need to continue you will need to make other arrangements with the relevant organisations.

Joint Accounts:

The account will simply be passed over to the remaining account holder. All Direct Debits and standing orders will continue as normal.

Safe Deposit Boxes:

The contents of the box will be released to the beneficiary (or executor/administrator) once we have received your Grant of Probate or Letters of Administration. The box will be closed and any joint or additional person access to the box will end.

ISAs:

Any funds in the account will be forwarded to an identified beneficiary. We will then close the account. Please be aware that ISA tax benefits stop upon a death.

Any married or civil partners can inherit an ISA allowance. This is equal to the amount the person had in their ISA when they passed away.  They are entitled to this additional allowance for up to three years.

Other savings accounts:

Any money in the account will be forwarded to an identified beneficiary. We will then close the account.

Loans, Credit Cards and Overdrafts:

We will use other accounts held with us to pay off any outstanding debts owed to us.

Help with funeral costs

It can be difficult to cover the costs of a funeral, but there are ways we can help you. If there are sufficient funds belonging to the deceased in an account held with us, we can pay any costs directly to the funeral director. All we need is an invoice. 

Alternatively, we can reimburse any costs you have already covered. All you need to do is send us a proof of the payment and the person who made it.

Help with Inheritance Tax:

There are a number rules that set out whether or not Inheritance Tax needs to be paid.  You’ll need to complete a tax form either way. The best place to start is by contacting HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) on 0300 123 1072 for advice and more information. 

If Inheritance Tax does need to be paid, and there are sufficient funds in an account held with us, we can make any necessary payments direct to HMRC. All we need is a completed ‘IHT423’ form, which is available from HMRC.

You can find the right tax form online at Inheritance Tax forms.