Overview

• In a 1 September post, HMRC said recent 18-year-olds may have an average £2,200 waiting in accounts set up at birth.
• Officials and media reports cite about £1.4 billion across hundreds of thousands of unclaimed accounts.
• Eligible people were born between 1 September 2002 and 2 January 2011, can take control at 16, and may withdraw or move the money to an adult ISA at 18.
• To locate an account, applicants submit a National Insurance number and personal details on GOV.UK, and HMRC typically replies within about three weeks with the provider’s name.
• Consumer expert Martin Lewis warns against fee-charging tracing firms, and charity The Share Foundation is calling for automatic payouts for some unclaimed balances by age 21.