Billions of pounds worth of unclaimed assets could soon be unlocked and used to boost a number of charities through the government’s new Dormant Assets Commission, according to a recent report by CivilSociety.co.uk.
The recently announced initiative is to be headed by Nick O’Donohoe, chief executive of Big Society Capital, and is expected to identify unclaimed investments and assets including bank accounts, stocks, shares, bonds and pensions, with the aim of using the funds to boost a number of good causes. According to government figures, this could total more than £1bn of assets which are currently lying dormant, unclaimed by rightful heirs.
The initiative is set to build on the action taken through the Dormant Accounts Scheme, where unclaimed bank accounts that have been untouched for 15 years or more are donated to charity by banks and building societies. Although customers do have the right to reclaim their assets at any time as long as they can demonstrate ownership, the Dormant Accounts Scheme has collected an estimated £750m worth of funds since its launch in 2008. Thanks to the scheme, tens of millions have been dispersed to good causes throughout the UK; the government is expecting similar success with the launch of this new project.
Nick O’Donohoe commented:
“I have been privileged to witness first-hand how unlocking UK dormant bank accounts for good causes has led to real improvements in people’s lives. But there is so much more potential.”
Tom Curran, Chief Executive at Title Research, commented:
“We deal with hundreds of cases each year where significant inheritances would potentially go unclaimed without our expert advice. While we wholeheartedly support the concept of donating unclaimed funds to good causes, we can help legal professionals to locate legitimate heirs quickly and easily, mitigating the risk of potentially stressful and expensive legal challenges further down the line.”
For more information on how Title Research can help you locate the beneficiaries of dormant accounts, click here.
Source – Daily Mail
Topics: Title Research, Dormant accounts, Missing Beneficiaries
