We are very sorry that you have had a bereavement. It’s bound to be a very difficult time, so we do our best to make sure dealing with us is easy and straightforward.
You will need to register the death at a register office within 5 days (8 days in Scotland). You may need to make an appointment. If you go to the register office closest to where the person died, you will be given the documents – including the death certificate that you need to close their bank accounts – the same day. If the death is still under investigation you will be issued an interim death certificate or ‘coroner’s certificate of fact of death’ instead of a death certificate. It’s a good idea to get several copies of the death certificate, if you can afford to. This means you won’t have to wait for your only copy to be returned each time you have to show it.
If there is a Will make sure that you have the most up-to-date version, as some people hold on to older versions for their records.
It can be difficult to cover the costs of a funeral, but there are ways we can help. If there are enough funds in the deceased’s accounts with us, we can pay the funeral director for you. All we need is an invoice.
Alternatively, we can reimburse any costs you have already covered. We need to see proof of payment like a receipt, and proof of the account that the payment came from. The reimbursement will be paid in to the same account.
Please send the documents by post, take them to a store, or submit via email to bereavement.services@metrobank.plc.uk.
Please note that we won’t release any funds from the deceased’s accounts for any reason other than paying for the funeral expenses.
Dealing with the estate yourself
You can deal with the estate yourself rather than appointing someone else to do it. You may need to apply for probate. Find out more in our FAQs below.
Appoint someone to administer the estate (if you wish)
You might find it easier to appoint a solicitor, chartered accountant, specialist probate service or bank to handle the administration. Bear in mind you’ll have to pay for this service.
You only need to tell us once that someone has passed away, as we will find everything they held with us. You can contact us if you are:
Please note that we will not discuss any account information with anyone not listed above.
You can take the original documents to a store, email them to us, or post copies. See our contact details below.
For all personal bank accounts (joint or sole) |
All the documents listed above
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For balances of £5,000 to £25,000 |
All of the above and:
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For balances of £25,000+ |
All of the above and:
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For a Safe Deposit Box (SDB) |
All of the above and:
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For business accounts |
If the deceased is the sole account holder and the account is being closed, please follow the directions for personal accounts. If the next of kin or a personal representative is going to take over the business OR the business has other signatories who wish to continue trading, please follow the directions for personal accounts, and also provide:
Our bereavement services team will get in touch with the relevant Metro Bank Local Business Manager on your behalf.
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For a mortgage |
We will require the death certificate. Our bereavement services team will get in touch with the mortgage team on your behalf. |
For borrowing (e.g. a credit card) |
Please follow the instructions for personal accounts, and also provide ID for all named executors/next of kin. |
For a RateSetter loan |
All of the documents listed above for ‘borrowing’. Our bereavement services team will get in touch with RateSetter on your behalf. |
If the deceased held a Safe Deposit Box with us you will need to visit a store to make the final arrangements. Otherwise, we will not need you to come in.
Sole personal accounts |
We will credit any funds in the account to the beneficiary. We will then close the account. This means that any Direct Debits and standing orders from the account will be cancelled. If these are ongoing payments you will need to arrange to pay them from another account. |
Joint personal accounts |
The account will be put in the sole name of the remaining account holder. All Direct Debits and standing orders will continue as before. |
Safe Deposit Boxes |
The contents of the box will be released to the beneficiary (or executor/administrator) once we have received their Grant of Probate or Letters of Administration. The box will be closed and any joint or additional person’s access to the box will end. You will need to visit a store to sign the paperwork. If a beneficiary wants to continue to hold a Safe Deposit Box with us, the box can be reopened under their name. |
Mortgages |
The Metro Bank mortgage team will contact you. |
Loans, credit cards and overdrafts |
We will use funds from current or savings accounts the deceased held with us to pay off any outstanding debts. Alternatively you can choose to pay these off. Additional cardholders won’t be able to use their cards anymore. |
Speak to us on the phone by calling 0203 824 4815
We're available Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm.
Send us a letter addressed to the bereavement services team
Metro Bank, One Southampton Row, London WC1B 5HA.
Find your nearest Metro Bank store below
We accept the following as ID (if you’re using non-photo ID, we need to see 3 forms of ID in total):
Photo ID (please provide one)
Non-photo ID (please provide three)
Please note that we can’t accept cover notes.
We need to see ID for all executors named on the Grant of Probate. A Letter of Authority signed by the other executors is needed if the funds are going to an account that is not held by all of them.
You can email or post us scanned copies of documents and ID, and in most cases we won’t need you to visit a store.
If the deceased had a Safe Deposit Box with us, you will need to visit a store to make the final arrangements and sign the paperwork.
Once we’ve seen the original death certificate (or equivalent) and the representative’s ID has been provided we can give you the deceased’s account statements.
The process for Wills, probate and inheritance depends on where the deceased lived:
To apply for a Grant of Probate you will need to:
You can find the Grant of Probate forms online or call 0300 123 1072 for more information.
You can also find the Inheritance Tax forms online.
ISAs
We will credit any funds in the account to the beneficiary. We will then close the account. Please be aware that ISA tax benefits end in the event of a death.
Any married or civil partners can inherit an ISA allowance, 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
We will credit any funds in the account to the beneficiary. We will then close the account.
For fixed-term savings accounts, the term can be cut short in the event of a death, so this type of account will be treated in the same way as any other savings.
Once we’ve seen all the estate documents, we will also need to see a marriage/civil partnership certificate. Then we will ask you to complete an ISA inheritance form.
If your ISA is with another provider (i.e. not Metro Bank), you’ll need to ask them to request an ISA allowance transfer from us.
There are a number of rules around whether 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 more information.
If Inheritance Tax does need to be paid, and there are sufficient funds in an account held with us, we can pay HMRC directly for you. All we need is a completed IHT423 form from HMRC.
Please let us know if you need a valuation and can arrange it being done by:
If the family is shielding or unable to get to a store, a friend can act on their behalf. We will need to see the original death certificate (or equivalent), valid photo ID for the friend, and a signed letter of authority from the next of kin stating they are happy for the friend to act on their behalf.
If there is no next of kin, a friend can act as an administrator if they provide us with a letter of administration and the original/certified Death Certificate (or equivalent), valid photo ID and a completed Bereavement Notification Form.
The person appointed when either no will can be found or there is no executor to carry out the intentions of the will.
Someone who is entitled to receive a specific gift, sum of money or share of the estate.
This is the legal document you get from a registrar, confirming the date, location and cause of the person’s death. We will accept the original death certificate, a certified copy, a death certificate verification form, or an interim death certificate.
A person’s estate includes everything they own and everything that’s registered in their name.
The person or persons named in a will to deal with the estate following a person’s death.
This is the executor or administrator managing the deceased’s estate. The personal representative is responsible for administering the estate, which means they need to collect all the assets and pay all bills and debts that need to be paid. Depending on how much money and assets the person who died had, the personal representative may need to apply for a Grant of Probate – if so, then no accounts can be closed until they have this document.
This is the official document that confirms to the executors that they have authority to act and which validates the will. Where there’s a Will, this will be a ‘Grant of Probate’. Where there’s no Will, it will be ‘Letters of Administration’.
This is the official document that appoints people to handle a person’s estate if:
A tax on the estate that generally applies when someone dies and when the value of their estate is above a specific threshold. The tax is paid before the estate can be distributed to the beneficiaries.
Probate is the legal process of dealing with someone’s estate after they’ve died. It involves collecting all of the person’s assets – their money, property and belongings – as well as settling debts and paying any taxes due, then sharing out what’s left as directed in the Will.
A legal document which indicates who should benefit from the estate and how. It also appoints an executor to distribute the estates, and may appoint guardians or contain funeral wishes.